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The New York Times has published a new expose about the ‘complicity machine’ that helped Harvey Weinstein allegedly sexually abuse at least 80 women over several decades.
The article pieces together the elements of Weinstein’s world that kept his victims silent – like paying a gossip columnist to gather dirt on his victims he would use to blackmail them into silence – and those that put women in his path, such as talent agents who heard the stories but sent their clients to meetings with him anyway.
Out of the story comes the allegation that Weinstein told several young women in Hollywood that he had slept with Gwyneth Paltrow, and told them they too should have sex with him, as it would help their careers.
The claim comes from Paltrow herself, who revealed to the Times that women have told her he falsely bragged about having had sex with her, telling them it was “the best thing you can do for your career now.”
“He’s not the first person to lie about sleeping with someone, but he used the lie as an assault weapon,” the actress told the Times.
In the Times‘ initial expose about Weinstein, the Goop founder said she was 22 and had just been hired by Weinstein to star in Emma when he asked her to come to his hotel room for a meeting.
There she describes being sexually harassed by Weinstein, which involved him putting his hands on her and suggesting they go to the bedroom to massage each other.
“I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified,” she recalled.
The actress told Brad Pitt, her then boyfriend about the incident, and he confronted Weinstein at a red carpet event, warning him to keep his hands off her.
Paltrow says she thought she’d be fired from the project after that, although she wasn’t – although he repeatedly bullied and verbally abused her.
“He screamed at me for a long time … It was brutal,” she said.
“He was alternately generous and supportive and championing, and punitive and bullying … I was expected to keep the secret [to continue to work].”
