Claire Foy
Adam Sandler

Claire Foy has broken her silence after Hollywood star Adam Sandler was widely condemned for repeatedly touching her knee throughout their appearance on the Graham Norton Show.

The Billy Madison star came under fire for placing his hand on her lower thigh while telling an anecdote, with many viewers claiming that Foy looked "uncomfortable" with the gesture.

More from IBTimes UK

The star of Netflix series The Crown appeared to fidget awkwardly before brushing his hand away. He removed his hand before patting her knee again moments later.

Clips from the show, which aired on Friday (27 October), show fellow guests Emma Thompson and Cara Delevingne watching the encounter but not commenting.

A representative for Foy insisted that she was not offended by the married father of one's actions. "We don't believe anything was intended by Adam's gesture and it has caused no offence to Claire," the spokeswoman said.

However, the scenes prompted outrage online with many viewers claiming he had no right to invade her personal space. "Emma Thompson and Clare Foy looking uncomfortable with Adam Sandler grabbing their legs on #GrahamNorton but no comment. This is not OK," said Louise Robertson.

"Adam Sandler touching Claire Foy's knee for no reason, she puts his hand back, he then does it again, she looked rightly pissed off," wrote Emily Ward.

Michelle Marsh said: "Adam Sandler has no social awareness of how awkward he seemed to be making Emma Thompson and Claire Foy."

The online uproar comes as a wave of media bosses were hit with allegations of sexual harassment and assault. Thompson has spoken out about the "endemic sexism" in Hollywood.

"I didn't know about these things but they don't surprise me at all and they are endemic to the system anyway. What I find extraordinary is that this man is at the top of a very particular iceberg," she said during an episode of BBC's Newsnight.

However, a representative for Sandler said that the actor's behaviour had been "blown out of proportion".

"We don't believe anything was intended by Adam's gesture and it has caused no offence to Claire," the spokeswoman said. He made a Sandler made a similar move when he patted Dustin Hoffman's knee during a recent US talk show.