Harvey Weinstein ‘harassed actresses for decades’
ONE of Hollywood’s most famous film producers sexually harassed aspiring actresses over almost three decades, according to an exposé in The New York Times.
Harvey Weinstein, 65-year-old creator of Miramax and producer of films including Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs and Scream, announced last night that he was taking time off from Weinstein Company in the light of the allegations. Ashley Judd and Rose Mcgowan were among the actresses to have accused Weinstein of inappropriate behaviour. “Women have been talking about Harvey amongst ourselves for a long time, and it’s beyond time to have the conversation publicly,” said Judd.
Eight of the women have received settlements, believed to be worth between $80,000 (£61,000) and $150,000 (£115,000).
“I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologise for it,” he told the paper. “Though I’m trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.”
He said he was working with therapists and planning to take a leave of absence to “deal with this issue head on”.
Weinstein has been married to Georgina Chapman, the British fashion designer who founded the Marzchesa label, since 2007, and the couple have two children. Prior to that he was married for more than 20 years to Eve Chilton, with whom he had three children.
Lauren O’connor, an assistant to Weinstein, had written a letter to several executives in 2015 after another unnamed assistant was pressured by Weinstein into giving him a massage while he was naked.
She wrote that Weinstein required her to have casting discussions with aspiring actresses – after they had private appointments in his hotel room.
She suspected that she and other female Weinstein employees were being used to facilitate liaisons with “vulnerable women who hope he will get them work”. Eight women told the New York Times that Weinstein would appear nearly or fully naked in front of them, requiring them to be present while he bathed or repeatedly asking for a massage or initiating one himself.
One woman advised a peer to wear a parka when summoned for duty as a layer of protection against unwelcome advances.
Lisa Bloom, a lawyer advising Weinstein, said in a statement that “he denies many of the accusations as patently false”. She described him as “an old dinosaur learning new ways”.