Bradley Cooper Was Unaware of Star is Born Producer's History of Sexual Harassment

This week, Jezebel published a report detailing lawsuits against A Star is Born producer Jon Peters, detailing a long history of sexual harassment allegations. After being asked about Peters' involvement in the film, director Bradley Cooper claimed he had no knowledge of Peters' past and that the producer's involvement in the film was part of the "grandfather clause of the movie."

NPR Morning Edition co-host Rachel Martin asked Cooper, "I have to ask you, one of the producers on the film is a man named Jon Peters. He's been sued multiple times for sexual harassment. The Producers Guild of America announced recently he would no longer be recognized as a producer on his film. But I wonder as a first-time director, did you think, 'What kind of a culture am I setting here? I'm the boss. I'm the director.'?"

Related | This Gay Man is Very Anxious About A Star is Born

"It's so true. It's a great question," Cooper responded. "With this property, there are many writers that come before -- if you see the end credits, it's like, there's 10 writers. And [Jon Peters] was part of the, I guess, the grandfather clause of the movie, and we had to get his consent in order to make the movie. When you're at the helm, it's a huge responsibility. And I guess -- I mean, first of all, on the set ... you have to create an environment where everybody feels safe. Everybody. And there's no room for disrespect, nothing. And that's something that you'd have to ask everybody who was involved, but I feel like that's the environment I created. Luckily, Jon wasn't there. And if I had known all those things, I would have done it differently. And I guess it's ... I wanted to make the movie, I knew I had to get consent from him, otherwise there's no film. But I should have checked. I guess that's the thing."

While Peters will no longer be credited as a P.G.A.-certified producer, he still stands to profit immensely from A Star is Born.