While many in Hollywood aren’t saying a word concerning recent revelations about Harvey Weinstein and his treatment of women over the course of his career, many others are beginning to publicly criticize the former mega-producer.
Actor and director George Clooney spoke about Weinstein in a Monday interview with The Daily Beast, saying, “It’s indefensible. That’s the only word you can start with. Harvey’s admitted to it, and it’s indefensible.”
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He continued, “I’ve known Harvey for 20 years. He gave me my first big break as an actor in films on ‘From Dusk Till Dawn.’ He gave me my first big break as a director with ‘Confessions of a Dangerous Mind’ … We’ve had dinners, we’ve been on location together, we’ve had arguments. But I can tell you that I’ve never seen any of this behavior — ever.”
Actress Jessica Chastain, who starred in three films distributed by The Weinstein Company, took to Twitter to say stories about Weinstein’s abusive behavior were “everywhere” in the industry and that she had been “warned from the beginning.”
She also clarified that the films she starred in produced by Weinstein were all completed before he got involved.
“I worked with Harvey five years ago and I did not experience any form of harassment personally, nor did I know about any of these allegations,” Jennifer Lawrence told The Hollywood Reporter on Monday. Lawrence won the Best Actress Academy Award for her work in 2012’s “Silver Linings Playbook,” which Weinstein produced.
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The actress added, “My heart goes out to all of the women affected by these gross actions. And I want to thank them for their bravery to come forward.”
Kate Winslet, who starred in the Weinstein-produced “The Reader,” told Variety, “The way Harvey Weinstein has treated these vulnerable, talented young women is NOT the way women should ever EVER deem to be acceptable or commonplace in ANY workplace.”
Others to previously work with Weinstein who have publicly spoken out include director Kevin Smith and actress Meryl Streep.
Many who have long-standing relationships with Weinstein in the industry have yet to publicly comment, like Quentin Tarantino, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. A recent story also revealed that Damon and Russell Crowe did damage control for Weinstein all the way back in 2004, when a story was in the works about his mistreatment of women.
(photo credit, homepage image: George Clooney 2 Berlinale…, CC BY 3.0, by Siebbi / Rula Jabreal & Harvey Weinstein, CC BY 2.0, by Nick Step / Kate Winslet at the Dressmaker Event, CC BY 2.0, by GabboT; photo credit, article image: Harvey Weinstein…, CC BY 3.0, by Zff2012)
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