Sex claims exposed
LARGER-THAN-LIFE Hollywood executive and Oscar winner Harvey Weinstein is taking a leave of absence from his own company after an explosive expose revealing decades of sexual harassment against women was published in The New York Times.
The article included firstperson accounts of Weinstein’s alleged conduct, including from actor Ashley Judd, who recounted an alleged incident from two decades ago in which she said she was asked to meet Weinstein in his hotel room.
She said Weinstein greeted her wearing a bathrobe and asked if he could give her a massage or if she would watch him shower, the paper reported.
“Women have been talking about Harvey amongst ourselves for a long time, and it’s simply beyond time to have the conversation publicly,” Judd told the newspaper.
Two unnamed company officials said at least eight women had received settlements from Weinstein over the years, including actor Rose McGowan, who allegedly had an incident with him in 1997 when she was 23.
Other stories include accounts of Weinstein coercing young women into giving him massages while naked, or watching him shower, and promising career advancement in return. The incidents were all said to have happened in hotel rooms.
But Weinstein’s lawyer Charles J. Harder said the story was “saturated with false and defamatory statements about Harvey Weinstein”.
“We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish,” Mr Harder said.
He did not respond to questions about what allegations Weinstein was contesting.
Mr Harder represented Hulk Hogan in his successful defamation suit against the now-defunct Gawker website.
“We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting,” a New York Times spokesperson said.
“Mr Weinstein was aware and able to respond to specific allegations in our story before publication. In fact, we published his response in full.”
Weinstein gave an interview to The New York Post, echoing Mr Harder’s statements and calling the Times’ reporting “reckless.” He accused the paper of having a “vendetta” against him.
Weinstein, 65, had a powerful perch in Hollywood for three decades, and was known for producing films such as Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love, for which he won an Oscar.