The disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer has claimed that his client was misquoted in an interview where he’s cited as admitting to having offered acting jobs in exchange for sex.
In a conversation, as reported by the Spectator, the 66-year-old producer defended his behavior as a widespread practice in the entertainment industry. He denied ever physically coercing women in his first interview since being accused by more than 75 women of sexual assault and misconduct.
“You were born rich and privileged and you were handsome,” he reportedly said to the journalist Taki Theodoracopulos, who is also his friend. “I was born poor, ugly, Jewish and had to fight all my life to get somewhere. You got lotsa girls, no girl looked at me until I made it big in Hollywood. Yes, I did offer them acting jobs in exchange for sex, but so did and still does everyone. But I never, ever forced myself on a single woman.”
Weinstein’s lawyer Ben Brafman has claimed that he was misquoted.
“I was present for the conversation; it was not an interview, but a social meeting between old friends,” Brafman said. “Harvey and Taki did not discuss the case, nor would I allow him to. We talked about old Hollywood and the contrast to European culture, and I think Taki sees Harvey in that older light. Mr Weinstein never said anything about trading movie roles for sexual favors. You have my word that Harvey did not say that.”
Theodoracopulos, who has previously expressed disbelief over the #MeToo movement, has also followed up the piece with a statement, saying he “may” have misrepresented his “old friend”.
“I believe that I may have misrepresented Harvey Weinstein’s conversation with me in New York last month,” he said. “I[t] was my mistake. We were discussing Hollywood and I may have misunderstood certain things about the methods of that place. I had nothing to do with the headline of my article and I hope I have not damaged his case. [I]t was, after all, a social visit.”
Weinstein’s apparent remarks come as he faces up to life in prison on charges of sexual assault. He has pleaded not guilty and was freed on $1m bail in June. He remains fitted with an electronic monitoring device after being accused of two initial charges of predatory sexual assault in New York. His lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said that more charges were expected.
The Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr, said Weinstein was charged with “some of the most serious sexual offenses” that exist under state law. Weinstein is also being investigated by federal prosecutors, the Los Angeles police department and police in the UK for a variety of alleged offenses.
Rose McGowan, who accused Weinstein of raping her in 1997, responded to the Spectator interview, tweeting “Rapists are liars” before following it up with a longer statement.
“Being that I was in the middle of my second film for his company, having NEVER met him before the morning of my rape, and never worked for him again, this is a clear lie,” she tweeted. “Nice try, rapist.”