Tarantino scorned after admission he knew about Weinstein
QUENTIN TARANTINO was greeted with condemnation last night after admitting that he knew about Harvey Weinstein’s behaviour and should have done more to stop it..
The 54-year-old director, who describes himself as having a father-son relationship with the 65-year-old producer, acknowledged that Weinstein nurtured his career. Tarantino has now admitted that he should have confronted his friend.
“I knew enough to do more than I did,” he said. “There was more to it than just the normal rumours, the normal gossip. It wasn’t second-hand. I knew he did a couple of these things.”
He told how his then girlfriend, actress Mira Sorvino, recounted Weinstein’s aggressive pursuit of her, and how the actress Rose Mcgowan told him of her abuse at his hands.
“I wish I had taken responsibility for what I heard,” he added. “If I had done the work I should have done then, I would have had to not work with him.”
The pair first worked together on 1994’s Pulp Fiction, and Weinstein has produced every one of Tarantino’s films since then.
Some mocked Tarantino for his confession, coming two weeks after the Oct 5 bombshell exposé, published by
The New York Times, which set off a torrent of further accusations from women in the movie industry.
“Quentin Tarantino knew for decades and did nothing,” said Melissa Silverstein, founder of campaign group Women in Hollywood. “Just let that sink in.”
“Tarantino profited so he didn’t really care,” said Lindsey Mcbride, a PR executive from Chicago. “All these guys are complicit.”
Tom Cooper, a property developer, tweeted: “Damn you Tarantino for not speaking up sooner. You knew and did nothing.” However, Amy Siskind, president of The New Agenda organisation, told The Telegraph she was pleased Tarantino had spoken out. “The epidemic in our country that has become so visible with the ‘me too’ hashtag can only be solved when good men speak out against the acts of the evil men who have been harassing, assaulting and raping women,” she said.
“Do I wish it did happen earlier? Yes. But we are sitting in the midst of what could be a real moment of sustainable change. So I applaud any man who comes out now and speaks truth to power.”
Yesterday a sixth woman, an unnamed 38-year-old Italian-american actress in Los Angeles, accused Weinstein of rape, following accusations from actresses Asia Argento, Rose Mcgowan, Lysette Anthony and Lucia Evans. An unnamed woman also told The New Yorker that he allegedly raped her. New York police already have two active sex crime inquiries and London’s Metropolitan Police are investigating allegations made by three women.
The new allegation in California could be legally troubling for Weinstein because it falls within the 10-year statute of limitations that existed at the time of the alleged incident.
Weinstein has denied all accusations of forced sexual contact.