Bill Murray still haunted by on set misconduct allegations

Bill Murray is still bothered by allegations of misconduct made against him as he saw the incident in question as a joke gone wrong.

In 2022, the production of Aziz Ansari's directorial debut Being Mortal was shut down over a complaint Murray, 74, had behaved inappropriately on set.

Speaking to The New York Times' The Daily podcast, the Lost in Translation star said: "I don't go too many days or weeks without thinking of what happened."

Reliving the incident, he recalled: "It was Covid, we were all wearing masks and we were all just stranded in this one room listening to this crazy scene. And I don't know what prompted me to do it, it's something that I had done to someone else before and I thought it was funny and every time it happened it was funny.

"I was wearing a mask and I gave her a kiss and she was wearing a mask. It wasn't like I touched her, it was just (makes smooching sound), I gave her a kiss through a mask, through another mask, to another person. And she wasn't a stranger."

Murray went on to say he believes he misjudged the person concerned, adding: "You know, you can teach an old dog new tricks. But I just thought it was a disappointment. It was a great disappointment because I thought I knew someone and I did not. And I certainly thought it was light and I thought it was funny. And to me it's still funny, the idea that you could give someone a kiss with a mask on, it's still stupid. That's all it was."

He went on to say that he felt "barbecued" by the arbitration process, which he said he had entered trying to "make peace" but ended up having to pay a reported $100,000 (£78,000) settlement.

Murray added: "It turned out there (were) preexisting conditions and all this kind of stuff, I'm like, 'What?' How is anyone supposed to know anything like that? There was to be no conversation, there was nothing, no peacemaking, nothing. And just went to this lunatic arbitration, which, if anyone ever suggests you go to arbitration: Don't do it. Never ever do it. Because you think it's justice, and it isn't."