Hollywood Producer Harvey Weinstein Exposed for Decades of Sexual Harassment

Harvey Weinstein has been accused of multiple cases of sexual harassment — including by actresses Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan — stretching over three decades. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

According to a New York Times investigation, Weinstein has reached at least eight different settlements. The publication discovered previously undisclosed allegations against the producer that were documented through interviews, legal records, emails and documents from his businesses – including Miramax and The Weinstein Company. All of the women alleged that Weinstein behaved inappropriately during work meetings in their claims. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Judd recalled Weinstein showing up to their business meeting at a Los Angeles hotel wearing a bathrobe, asking her to watch him shower and if she wanted a massage. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

The “Divergent” actress said she remembers thinking, “How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?” ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

McGowan had a similar experience and reportedly reached a $100,000 settlement with the film mogul, after an encounter in a hotel room during the #Sundance Film Festival in 1997. ⠀⠀⠀

Other victims listed in the investigation include an assistant in 1990, an actress in 1997, another assistant in 1998, a Weinstein employee in 2014, and an Italian model in 2015, who claimed that Harvey asked her inappropriate questions about her body and groped her during a meeting. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

After the allegations surfaced, the Oscar-winning producer announced plans to take a “leave of absence” in a statement to the New York Times. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

“I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though I’m trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go,” he said, adding plans to work with therapists and take time off to “deal with this issue head-on.” ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

His attorney, Lisa Bloom, said in a separate statement that “he denies many of the accusations as patently false.” ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Weinstein co-founded Miramax with his brother, Bob, in the 1970s. After the studio was sold to Disney in 2005, the brothers founded The Weinstein Company, which produced several box office hits including “Pulp Fiction,” “Django Unchained” and “Inglourious Basterds.”