Movie producer Harvey Weinstein has been terminated from The Weinstein Co., less than a week after The New York Times reported multiple instances of sexual harassment.
Mia Galuppo of The Hollywood Reporter had the news:
“In light of new information about misconduct by Harvey Weinstein that has emerged in the past few days,” begins the Sunday statement from TWC’s board of directors, “the directors of The Weinstein Company […] have determined, and have informed Harvey Weinstein, that his employment with The Weinstein Company is terminated, effective immediately.”
The board made a decision to oust Weinstein at a meeting held Sunday afternoon. It comes as Weinstein was insisting that he maintain a path to return to the company after a leave of absence.
Following the Oct. 5 New York Times report detailing sexual harassment claims spanning decades on the part of the mogul, the TWC board began meeting on Thursday night, holding a contentious emergency meeting at which Weinstein pled his case. On Friday, the board reconvened to decide on both Weinstein’s immediate fate and how the company should move forward, deciding that Harvery would take an “indefinite leave of absence.”
Sandra Gonzalez and Brian Stelter of CNNMoney.com reported that the company feared losing business:
Over the weekend, the scandal deepened and became an even more serious threat to the future of the company.
Some clients of the Weinstein Co. said they might stop working with the company if Harvey Weinstein was still associated with it.
Discussions between Weinstein’s attorneys and the board were underway on Sunday, according to a source with knowledge of the matter.
Those discussions ended with Sunday’s announcement.
All of this was prompted by Thursday’s Times expose, which revealed the powerful film producer has faced many accusations of sexual harassment spanning decades. He reached at least eight settlements with women between 1990 and 2015.
Actress Ashley Judd was among those who spoke to the Times for the story and made an accusation of inappropriate conduct.
Graham Russell of The Guardian reported that Weinstein’s harassment has been an open secret:
Weinstein’s allegedly inappropriate behaviour towards women he worked with and those who starred in his films has been referred to as an open secret in Hollywood.
President Donald Trump, whose presidential campaign was rocked a year ago by the release of a recording in which he boasted about groping women, has said he was not surprised by sexual harassment allegations against the media mogul. “I’ve known Harvey Weinstein for a long time. I’m not at all surprised to see it,” Trump told White House reporters on Saturday.
Dozens of Democrats have since moved quickly to sever ties with Weinstein, with many donating his past campaign contributions to women’s charities. Weinstein has given more than $1.4m in political contributions since 1992, virtually all to Democrats.
Weinstein has expressed regret for his inappropriate behaviour towards women stretching back decades, saying “I own my mistakes”, but his lawyers say he also denies many of the allegations made against him.
