The former NYT “Ethicist” columnist is now dealing with his own moral dilemma — suing the producers of a film about his ex-wife that depicts him as a “profligate philanderer.”
Randy Cohen says the trailer for “Learning to Drive” starring Patricia Clarkson as his ex-wife Katha Pollitt falsely portrays him as a lying cheater.
The 2015 independent film, produced by Broad Green Pictures, is based on a story Pollitt wrote for The New Yorker in 2002 about getting her first driver’s license in her 50s.
The article describes Pollitt’s ex as a “dedicated philanderer, a womanizer, a liar, a cheat, a manipulator, a maniac, a psychopath.”
Except she’s talking about the man she dated after splitting up with Cohen, the Manhattan civil suit says.
The article actually calls Cohen, father to their 28-year-old daughter, Sophie, an “excellent father” who helps Pollitt with her tech troubles.
In the film, Clarkson’s character says to her daughter, “Instead of buying a motorcycle, Daddy decided to give adultery a spin.”
It’s been viewed 1.2 million times.
Cohen’s slander suit is for unspecified damages.
A rep for Broad Green said he was looking into the claim.