Rotten Apples: Website tells you which movies feature alleged abusers so you can avoid them

Rotten Apples could be the new Rotten Tomatoes

Kevin Spacey onstage to present Britannia Award for Excellence in Television on October 27, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California. (Credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

Since the allegations of sexual assault and abuse have been levelled at Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, the floodgates have opened on the entertainment industry.

Each day there seems to be a new report about alleged improper and illegal conduct among some of the biggest names.

Since October, Kevin Spacey, Mario Batali, James Toback, Ed Westwick and many more men have been accused of abusing their positions of power against other people.

Not to be confused with Rotten Tomatoes, Rotten Apples is a database that “informs users which films or television shows are connected to those accused of sexual harassment or worse.”

Visitors are able to search by TV show or film title to determine if there is a “known affiliation to anyone with allegations of sexual misconduct against them.”

According to its advertising professional creators, the site, which launched on Tuesday, accumulated nearly 500K searches in the first 50 or so hours.

But the founders, who have no affiliation to the film industry, aren’t trying to make a profit off of it.

Instead, they want to help TV and film fans make “ethical media consumption decisions”.

For instance, if a user searches House of Cards, Kevin Spacey’s name will come up with a description that shows that Spacey “faces sexual misconduct allegations.”

Weinstein has denied the accusations against him. In October, Spacey released a statement where he came out as homosexual and apologised for 'deeply inappropriate' behaviour with regards to one alleged incident.

Rotten Apples is an interesting concept, but the question remains as to whether or not the site will actually stop fans from watching a certain movie or show.

The truth is that in the moment, viewers might be appalled at the information they discover about their favourite movie or TV show, but chances are it won’t stop them from watching it.

Separating art from an artist isn't necessarily an easy thing to do.

For now, the site is currently limited to more famous names in Hollywood because they’re linking to reputable news organisations, but the creators do wish to get more granular.

H/T: NY Times