Academy Award-winning actress Rachel Weisz seemed to question in an interview with the Evening Standard whether the recent outcry against the culture of harassment and misconduct in Hollywood has more to do with long-overdue justice for victims of abuse or “power and money.”
Weisz referenced one of Harvey Weinstein’s accusers, British actress Sophie Dix, who claimed last year that the disgraced movie producer sexually assaulted her when she was 22 years old — an experience Dix called “the single most damaging thing that’s happened in my life,” that ruined her budding acting career.
“My friend Sophie Dix has been talking about this since the 1990s. She would tell anyone who would listen [to] her story, for the last 20 years. And no one seemed to care,” Weisz told the outlet.
Brendan Fraser, John Hannah, and Rachel Weisz in The Mummy (Universal Pictures, 1999)
Rachel Weisz and James Franco in Oz the Great and Powerful (Disney Enterprises, Inc., 2013)
People seem “to care” now, Weisz contends, because Weinstein’s “power was on the wane,” thus making him vulnerable and his alleged predation an easy target.
“I think his power was on the wane,” Weisz said. “It’s about economics — they weren’t turning over the big bucks any more. That’s not an optimistic thing to say, but this is all about power and money.”
Weinstein, of course, has been accused of sexual harassment or assault by nearly 90 women following last October’s bombshell New York Times report alleging decades of abuse and settlements by the disgraced mogul. Several stars and prominent Hollywood players have said that Weinstein’s alleged abusive behavior was an “open secret.”
Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter: @JeromeEHudson
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