Actor Geoffrey Rush is suing Sydney newspaper The Daily Telegraph over reports of a complaint made about him to Sydney Theatre Company involving allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” during his time working on the company’s production of King Lear in 2015 and 2016.

“Today I have filed defamation proceedings against The Daily Telegraph in the Federal Court of Australia,” the actor said at a press conference in Melbourne. “It is an action I am taking in order to redress the slurs, innuendo and hyperbole they have created around my standing in the entertainment industry and greater community.”

The Daily Telegraph has made false, pejorative and demeaning claims – splattering them with unrelenting bombast on its front pages,” he said. “This has created irreparable damage to my reputation, been extremely hurtful to my wife, my daughter and my son; to my extended family – and to my many colleagues in the Film, Television and Theatre industry.”

The Daily Telegraph reported on November 30, in a story on its front page, that Sydney Theatre Company had received a complaint about the award-winning actor, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

“Sydney Theatre Company was asked by a News Ltd journalist earlier this month whether it had received...