Los Angeles (AFP) – Dozens of actress, models and ex-employees have come out to accuse veteran producer Harvey Weinstein, 66, of harassment, abuse and rape dating as far back as the 1990s.
With Weinstein expected to surrender to authorities in New York on Friday to face possible criminal charges, here is a look at the list of his accusers:
– The first complaints –
The scandal unfurled with the testimonies of eight women published in The New York Times on October 5 last year. The women who spoke out were anonymous ex-employees of the director, known for his work on films including “The King’s Speech,” as well as actress Ashley Judd.
The newspaper also revealed other cases of harassment, including actress Rose McGowan and model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez, who reportedly received settlements from Weinstein following the incidents.
The New Yorker magazine carried out its own 10-month investigation, published October 10, which featured accusations from 13 women — including three of rape from actresses Asia Argento and Lucia Evans, and another anonymous young woman.
Revelations from a string of superstars — including Rosanna Arquette, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Cara Delevingne and Lea Seydoux — prompted other less famous women to speak out, although the focus remained on the celebrities.
– Asia Argento –
Argento, the Italian actress who has said she was raped by Weinstein at the Cannes film festival, made an emotional speech at this year’s edition, the first since the scandal about his behavior erupted.
“This festival was his hunting ground,” the 42-year-old star told the festival’s award ceremony, where she presented the best actress prize.
Argento says she was 21 when she was attacked by Weinstein in his hotel room in 1997.
“He was seated among you… But things have changed. We are not going to allow you to get away with it,” she added.
– Rose McGowan –
McGowan, who accuses Weinstein of raping her at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, also in 1997, is one of the most prominent advocates in the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment.
In a public speech around the time the scandal broke, McGowan decried what she called a pervasive culture of sexual misconduct in Hollywood, and urged women to fight back.
“I have been silenced for 20 years. I have been slut-shamed. I have been harassed. I have been maligned, and you know what? I’m just like you,” said McGowan, 44.
She hit the headlines again for criticizing Meryl Streep in a since-deleted tweet over plans for actresses to wear black to January’s Golden Globes in a silent protest against sexual assault.
“YOUR SILENCE is THE problem. You’ll accept a fake award breathlessly & affect (sic) no real change. I despise your hypocrisy,” McGowan tweeted. Streep denied McGowan’s claims that the 68-year-old triple Oscar-winner had turned a blind eye to Weinstein’s behavior.
– Ashley Judd –
Judd, one of the first women to publicly accuse Weinstein, started legal proceedings against him this month on the grounds that he defamed her after she rejected his advances.
The “Frida” and “Divergent” actress accuses Weinstein of ruining her chance to be cast in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy by making false statements to director Peter Jackson that he’d had a bad experience with Judd, calling her a “nightmare.”
The lawsuit describes the “pathetic reality” that Weinstein was retaliating after Judd, 50, rejected his sexual advances a year earlier, when he allegedly cornered her in a hotel room under the guise of discussing business.
Judd said in a prepared statement that any damages she wins will go to the Time’s Up legal fund, “so that women and men in all professions may have legal redress for sexual harassment, economic retaliation and damage to their careers.”