Oscar-winning actor Casey Affleck has pulled out of this year's Academy Awards, his publicist has confirmed.
Casey Affleck Photo: AFP
By tradition, Affleck - who won Best Actor for Manchester By The Sea in 2017 - would have been expected to present the best actress award this year.
The actor, brother of Hollywood star Ben Affleck, was sued by two female crew members for alleged sexual harassment in 2010.
He denies the allegations, and the lawsuits were settled out of court.
An Oscars spokeswoman confirmed that Affleck would not attend, saying: "We appreciate the decision to keep the focus on the show and on the great work of this year."
Affleck's accusers, producer Amanda White and director of photography Magdalena Gorka, say they were harassed during the making of the mockumentary film I'm Still Here, which Affleck directed.
Ms White claimed that Affleck had refused to pay her salary because she would not spend the night in a hotel room with him, while Ms Gorka alleged that Affleck crawled into bed with her as she slept.
Their claims have drawn renewed attention in the months since sexual abuse allegations were levelled against US movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.
The Weinstein allegations sparked the rise of the #MeToo hashtag, which inspired a global movement of women and men to share their stories of sexual abuse and harassment.
More than 300 actresses, writers and directors responded by launching Time's Up - a project to help fight sexual harassment in the film industry and other workplaces.
The initiative was announced via a full-page ad printed in the New York Times.
At the 75th Golden Globe Awards earlier this month, nearly all of the actresses took to the red carpet in black to honour victims of sexual harassment.
The event saw powerful speeches about the sexual abuse scandal, including one from Oprah Winfrey which received worldwide attention.
The 2018 Oscars will take place on 4 March in Los Angeles.
