The Paradox Of Rebuking Harvey Weinstein But Collaborating With Other Alleged Abusers
A significant fraction of Hollywood spent years ignoring or possibly covering up the chilling sexual assault allegations lodged against well-known producer Harvey Weinstein, fostering an infrastructure that discourages survivors from speaking out against men who hold positions of power. This cycle of abuse, particularly as it relates to women, is only as sturdy as those who fortify the institutions in which it occurs.
We’ve traveled this road before. Last year, the media retried years-old allegations surrounding two men whose movies collected awards-season momentum: Casey Affleck, the white “Manchester by the Sea” actor whose sexual harassment allegations didn’t prevent him from winning an Oscar, and Nate Parker, the black “Birth of a Nation” director whose rape allegations led to a swift rebuke.
Despite the accusations against Affleck, the 42-year-old actor has several starring roles on his docket. Just last month, “Atonement” and “Pride & Prejudice” director Joe Wright chose Affleck to headline an upcoming adaptation of John Williams’ novel “Stoner,” which revolves around an underprivileged early-1900s farmer who becomes a literary scholar.
“Casting is the most important decision a director makes,” Wright told HuffPost Wednesday during an interview outside a Manhattan restaurant.
The Golden Globe–nominated director was promoting his next movie, “Darkest Hour,” a Winston Churchill biopic that has earned sterling Oscar buzz since premiering at last month’s Telluride and Toronto film festivals. (Gary Oldman looks like the guy to beat for Best Actor come February. More on that next month when “Darkest Hour” opens.)
Because it’s the topic on everyone’s mind this week, I asked Wright whether he’d ever interacted with Weinstein.
“I thought this would come up, but you’re the first journalist who’s asked,” he said toward the end of our allotted interview time. “No. Harvey, for many years, tried to court me into a meeting with him, and I always enjoyed playing this game where I refused to meet him. I didn’t like his bullying, aggressive tactics, in terms of his business, and I didn’t want to be in a creative partnership with someone who’s basically a bully. I’m amazingly impressed by the women who’ve come forward. I think that’s a very brave thing to do.”
Wright, who lives in London, said he was unfamiliar with the harassment and assault claims surrounding Weinstein, which were an open secret in Hollywood for years.
“I kind of chose quite specifically not to engage with [The Weinstein Company], basically because I didn’t like the sound of it,” Wright continued. “That was from a business-practice perspective.”
If more directors had followed Wright’s lead, Weinstein may not have secured the same stature. Even though he was able to quash reports about his predatory conduct, his reputation as an all-around browbeater preceded him. He was akin to Old Hollywood studio moguls of the 1930s and ’40s, famous ― celebrated, even, at times ― for displaying aggressive behavior toward some of the directors under his command and many of the underlings he employed. If filmmakers clashed with Weinstein, he’d shelve or bury their projects. In 2000, Weinstein reportedly put a journalist in a headlock at a book party. In 2009, by which point Weinstein was inarguably one of the most notorious executives in Hollywood, The Weinstein Company skirted bankruptcy, proving that its namesake’s skillful Oscar campaigns didn’t guarantee reliable revenue. During an acceptance speech at the Golden Globes in 2012, Meryl Streep called Weinstein “the punisher ― Old Testament, I guess.”
So, yes, Wright was wise to avoid Weinstein. But the support Wright expressed for Weinstein’s victims begs an obvious interrogation: Why cast Affleck a different alleged harasser in his next movie?
Despite knowing the interview was coming to a close, I asked a version of that very query: “With ‘Stoner,’ don’t you worry people will ask questions about the allegations surrounding Casey Affleck?”
Cigarette in hand, Wright peered at me over the top of his sunglasses. “No, I don’t, really,” he said. “I don’t.”
Wright wasn’t combative, but he expressed no interest in elaborating. A few seconds of silence lingered as I waited for him to continue speaking. Then a publicist, who had been standing nearby, said it was time to wrap up. I shook Wright’s hand and left.
There’s a mixed value system at play here. A robust Hollywood director, who calls casting the ultimate harbinger, is supporting Weinstein’s victims, yet he doesn’t give much thought to his next lead actor’s alleged past.
Affleck has one known allegation against him, which was settled out of court in 2010 ― a far cry from the scores of women who have accused Weinstein of attempting to lure them into hotel rooms, exposing his genitals or grabbing their bodies without invitation, including such famous actresses as Ashley Judd, Rose McGowan and Angelina Jolie. But as more influential men turn out to be predators ― Donald Trump, Bill Cosby, Bill O’Reilly, Roger Ailes, R. Kelly, Woody Allen ― it’s become clear that the media and entertainment industries have long granted free passes to abusers with cultural clout. Now that more women feel empowered to speak out, the men who hire wrongdoers must wrestle with the role they play in the larger system that bolsters systemic sexual misconduct.
In covering the Affleck scandal last year, my colleagues and I argued that studios and directors must take abuse allegations into account at preliminary stages in the development process. By the time an actor is winning awards, for example, he’s already earned his paycheck and critical plaudits. However well-intentioned Wright may be, his divergent reactions regarding Weinstein and Affleck reflect the pick-and-choose mentality that many Hollywood veterans employ: It’s only a problem if it’s not their problem.
Also on HuffPost:
Ashley Judd
She told the Times that she thought, “How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?”
Gwyneth Paltrow
“I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified,” she said, noting that when Weinstein found out she told her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt, "I thought he was going to fire me."
Angelina Jolie
Kate Winslet
"I had hoped that these kind of stories were just made up rumours, maybe we have all been naïve," she said. "And it makes me so angry. There must be ‘no tolerance’ of this degrading, vile treatment of women in ANY workplace anywhere in the world.”
Meryl Streep
“The disgraceful news about Harvey Weinstein has appalled those of us whose work he championed, and those whose good and worthy causes he supported," she said in a statement.
Rose McGowan
After The Weinstein Company fired Harvey, the actress and director called on the rest of the studio's board to resign.
"They knew," she said in a tweet. "They funded. They advised. They covered up. They must be exposed. They must resign."
Ben Affleck
Actress Rose McGowan denounced Affleck for implying that he didn't know of the abuse before this week, saying that the pair had previously discussed Weinstein's treatment of her.
"You lie," she tweeted.
Lena Dunham
"Abuse, threats and coercion have been the norm for so many women trying to do business or make art," she wrote. "Mr. Weinstein may be the most powerful man in Hollywood to be revealed as a predator, but he’s certainly not the only one who has been allowed to run wild. His behavior, silently co-signed for decades by employees and collaborators, is a microcosm of what has been happening in Hollywood since always and of what workplace harassment looks like for women everywhere."
George Clooney
"A good bunch of people that I know would say, “Yeah, Harvey’s a dog” or “Harvey’s chasing girls,” but again, this is a very different kind of thing," the actor told the Daily Beast. "This is harassment on a very high level. And there’s an argument that everyone is complicit in it. I suppose the argument would be that it’s not just about Hollywood, but about all of us—that every time you see someone using their power and influence to take advantage of someone without power and influence and you don’t speak up, you’re complicit. And there’s no question about that."
Jennifer Lawrence
"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. This kind of abuse is inexcusable and absolutely upsetting," Lawrence said in a statement. "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."
Hillary Clinton
Clinton said that she "was shocked and appalled by the revelations about Harvey Weinstein. The behavior described by women coming forward cannot be tolerated. Their courage and the support of others is critical in helping to stop this kind of behavior."
Barack and Michelle Obama
"Michelle and I have been disgusted by the recent reports about Harvey Weinstein," the Obamas said in a statement. "Any man who demeans and degrades women in such fashion needs to be condemned and held accountable, regardless of wealth or status. We should celebrate the courage of women who have come forward to tell these painful stories. And we all need to build a culture -- including by empowering our girls and teaching our boys decency and respect -- so we can make such behavior less prevalent in the future."
Judi Dench
"Whilst there is no doubt that Harvey Weinstein has helped and championed my film career for the past 20 years, I was completely unaware of these offenses which are, of course, horrifying and I offer my sympathy to those who have suffered, and whole-hearted support to those who have spoken out," she said in a statement.
Leonardo DiCaprio
"There is no excuse for sexual harrassment or sexual assault-- no matter who you are and no matter what profession," DiCarpio said in a Facebook Post. "I applaud the strength and courage of the women who came forward and made their voices heard."
Jessica Chastain
"I was warned from the beginning" about Weinstein, she said in a tweet. "The stories were everywhere. To deny that is to create an environment for it to happen again."
Julianne Moore
Colin Firth
“It must have been terrifying for these women to step up and call him out. And horrifying to be subjected to that kind of harassment. I applaud their courage."
Tamron Hall
Blake Lively
The actress said that she was unaware of the abuse but admitted that "it's devastating to hear."
"It's important that women are furious right now. It's important that there is an uprising. It's important that we don't stand for this and that we don't focus on one or two or three or four stories. It's important that we focus on humanity in general and say, 'This is unacceptable.'"
Julia Roberts
Ryan Gosling
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
