Harvey Weinstein's Sexual Harassment Saga Takes Hollywood by Storm

Harvey Weinstein, one of the biggest names in Hollywood has come under a scathing attack from the media following accusations of sexual harassment and assault. Renowned actress Ashley Judd set the ball rolling when she told her story to the New York Times. This triggered a flurry of similar exposés by Hollywood employees and actresses young and old.

A few hours after the news report, his wife, Georgina Chapman announced that she was leaving him after a decade of marriage. She is the founder of Marchesa, a renowned fashion label that has dressed quite a few celebrities like Michelle Obama, Jennifer Lopez and Sienna Miller among others. She has two children with him aged four and seven and was quoted saying that these young ones are her top priority and she would, therefore, appreciate some privacy.

On Tuesday, the 41-year-old British fashion designer confirmed she had left the film producer, saying: “My heart breaks for all the women who have suffered tremendous pain because of these unforgivable actions.”

Some of the most outstanding names on the list of Harvey Weinstein’s victims include Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Heather Graham, Mira Sorvino, Rosanna Arquette, Katherine Kendall, Dawn Dunning and Hayley Atwell. The number of accusations leveled against him is already in excess of 20. In fact, according to the New York Times, there are allegations going as far back as 30 years. For some of the victims who were bold enough to come forward, there are records for at least eight different settlements by Harvey Weinstein after accusations of sexual harassment.

Rose McGowan was the only actress, alongside Ashley Judd, to be named by the US paper as one of Weinstein's victims.

Actress Rose McGowan is one of those who reached such a settlement with Harvey after an incidence in a hotel room. The agreement worth $100,000 was reached in 1997 not so long after she starred in the movie “Scream”. She has voiced her support for the other victims who have finally decided to come forward and has criticized the Hollywood personalities who knew about it but remained silent.

“This way of treating women ends now,” Ms. Paltrow said as she and other actresses accused the producer of casting-couch abuses.

Gwyneth Paltrow was only 22 when her encounter with the entertainment Mogul took place. She explained to that she had just been hired for her first major role and before they started filming, she was summoned to his suite for a business meeting. On getting there, Harvey kept requesting for a massage. She turned him down and told her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt about the ordeal. Brad Pitt confronted him and told him off for his conduct warning him against ever touching her again.

Jolie does not get into the details of her experience but explains that it took place in the late 90s in a hotel room. They had just finished shooting “Playing by Heart” and after turning Harvey down, she made the choice never to work with him again and has also been warning other actresses against it.

“This behavior towards women in any field, any country is unacceptable.”Angelina Jolie

Weinstein, currently 65 years old, has won multiple Oscar Awards thanks to such huge hits as "Pulp Fiction", "Django Unchained" and "Spy Kids". He made his debut in the 70s when he began making films together with his brother, Bob. In 1979, they launched their own studio and named it Miramax, after mom and dad, Miriam and Maz. They grew this name to great heights and in 1993 made a fortune selling it to Disney. 12 years later, in 2005, they started The Weinstein Company.

"While I still do feel guilty for not speaking up all those years ago, I’m glad for this moment of reckoning. To the countless other women who have experienced the gray areas: I believe you."Heather Graham

The company’s board has reacted strongly to Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment allegations citing shock and dismay at the turn of events. His contract with the company, which was meant to run into 2018, was terminated on 8th October. Harvey is however not taking this lying down as he has hired Patty Glaser to represent his interests against the company. You might remember her from Conan O’Brien’s case against NBC for putting an end to the "Tonight Show". The complainant walked away with $32 million in that case.

Harvey Weinstein has since left for Europe purportedly to attend rehab and take a much-needed break from everything.