One of the "Kill Bill" producers Uma Thurman accused of covering up her on-set car accident expressed heavy remorse _ but denied any wrongdoing.
Lawrence Bender, a frequent Quentin Tarantino collaborator who served as a producer on "Kill Bill" in 2003, said he had "deep regret" over the resulting pain Thurman suffered, but claimed he in no way attempted to cover up the accident.
"I deeply regret that Uma suffered the pain she has ... the safety of the professionals who work on the movies I produce is vital to me and I never want to let anyone down," Bender told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement.
"I never hid anything from Uma or anyone else nor did I participate in any cover up of any kind _ and I never would."
Thurman alleged in an Instagram post Monday that Bender and executive producers E. Bennett Walsh and Harvey Weinstein kept the footage of the crash from her as a way of protecting themselves.
"I was informed of Uma's feelings in regards to this incident a few months ago and have done my best over this time to get as much verifiable information from all of the relevant sources that I could and shared it with Quentin. I wanted to make sure she had all of the answers she had been seeking," Bender said.
"I have great respect for Uma Thurman, both as an artist and a person, and only wish her well."
Thurman first divulged details of the crash in a New York Times piece on Saturday.
She claimed Tarantino forced her to do a stunt that she had asked not to do, citing safety fears _ and that her fears had come true when she crashed the car into a palm tree.
Thurman on Monday released footage of the accident on Instagram, and said that she does not blame the "deeply regretful" Tarantino.
Instead, the "Pulp Fiction" actress said she is proud of the director for handing over footage of the crash, which she says she tried unsuccessfully for years to obtain.
Thurman placed the blame on Bender, Walsh and Weinstein in that same Instagram post.
"THE COVER UP after the fact is UNFORGIVABLE," she wrote. "For this I hold Lawrence Bender, E. Bennett Walsh, and the notorious Harvey Weinstein solely responsible. They lied, destroyed evidence, and continue to lie about the permanent harm they caused and then chose to suppress."
