Lisa Bloom promised Weinstein accusers would be undermined

Harvey Winstein’s former lawyer has denied ‘going after his accusers’ after promising in a leaked email that ‘more and different reporting’ would discredit them. 

When the New York Times reported on decades of sexual misconduct allegations against the Hollywood producer on Thursday, Lisa Bloom wrote to the Weinstein Company’s board of directors to tell them the story ‘largely false and defamatory’.

In the email leaked to HuffPost, she appeared to suggest a strategy of discrediting the mogul’s accusers.

She wrote: ‘Tomorrow there will be more and different reporting, highlighting inaccuracies, including photos of several of the accusers in very friendly poses with Harvey after his alleged misconduct.’

At least two Weinstein Company board members criticised her approach, with Lance Maerov accusing her of ‘fanning the flames and compounding the problem’.

He wrote in an email seen by the New York Times: ‘Publishing pictures of victims in friendly poses with Harvey will backfire as it suggests they are exculpatory or negate any harm done to them through alleged actions.’ 

Lisa Bloom then quit as Weinstein’s advisor on Saturday. 

But on Monday the lawyer told HuffPost: ‘There was absolutely no plan to go after accusers. What I meant [in the email] was that there is going to be a lot more coming because every media outlet in the world was reaching out to us with information and yes, photos.’

She added: ‘I said publicly we weren’t going after accusers. Harvey said that too. When asked in interviews, I said only that they deserved respect. If I had this nefarious plan, it would have been easy to execute ― just hit send. Please. This is an insult to me and my life’s work for 31 years.’

Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein arrives for the Jury Cinecoles ceremony during the 13th annual Marrakech International Film Festival in Marrakech in 2013

In Bloom’s leaked email to the board she also stuck up for Weinstein by criticising the New York Times. 

She wrote: ‘I do know what while Harvey clearly has a pattern of bad behavior, the New York Times refused to take into account eyewitness statements that disproved some of the more serious allegations, significant inconsistencies in some of the accusers’ stories, and documents that bear upon some of the stories. 

‘He was given only two days to respond to dozens of allegations spanning 30 years. I am sure his own company wants to approach this in a manner that is more fair.’  

On Monday George Clooney and Jennifer Lawrence joined the condemnation of disgraced Weinstein after it was claimed he sexually harassed women for decades.

The producer helped Jennifer Lawrence win an Oscar with Silver Linings Playbook and gave Clooney his first break on the big screen in From Dusk Till Dawn and as a director in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.

But the A-listers turned on Weinstein – a man once revered as God by some of the world’s best actors – after he was fired from his own production company over dozens of sexual harassment allegations. 

In an interview last night, the actor broke his silence and called Weinstein’s behavior ‘indefensible’, adding that ‘the reality is that this is a problem deeply ingrained in our society’.

George Clooney and Harvey Weinstein at the Confessions of a Dangerous Mind premiere in New York in November 2002

Actress Jennifer Lawrence and Harvey Weinstein attend the 24th Annual GLAAD Media Awards presented by Ketel One and Wells Fargo at JW Marriott Los Angeles at LA LIVE on April 20, 2013 in Los Angeles, California

Clooney told the Daily Beast: ‘It’s indefensible. That’s the only word you can start with.

‘Harvey’s admitted to it, and it’s indefensible. I’ve known Harvey for 20 years.  

‘We’ve had dinners, we’ve been on location together, we’ve had arguments. But I can tell you that I’ve never seen any of this behavior—ever.’ 

In a long interview with the website, Clooney made the shock claims that Weinstein’s circle of colleagues were complicit in the sexual harassment allegations.

He said: ‘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.

‘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. 

Jennifer Lawrence and Harvey Weinstein attend an awards ceremony in 2013

‘And there’s no question about that.’

Jennifer Lawrence has echoed the sentiments, stating although she had not witnessed Weinstein’s inappropriate acts herself, she still condemned the producer. 

She told Variety: ‘I was deeply disturbed to hear the news about Harvey Weinstein’s behavior. This kind of abuse is inexcusable and absolutely upsetting.’

Kate Winslet, who won an Oscar for The Weinstein Co’s The Reader said in a statement that the alleged behavior is ‘without question disgraceful and appalling’. 

‘The fact that these women are starting to speak out about the gross misconduct of one of our most important and well regarded film producers, is incredibly brave and has been deeply shocking to hear,’ wrote Winslet.

‘The way Harvey Weinstein has treated these vulnerable, talented young women is not the way women should ever ever deem to be acceptable or commonplace in any workplace.’

She then used a majority fo her statement to support the women who have com forward.

‘I have no doubt that for these women this time has been, and continues to be extremely traumatic. 

‘I fully embrace and salute their profound courage, and I unequivocally support this level of very necessary exposure of someone who has behaved in reprehensible and disgusting ways,’ said Winslet.

‘His behaviour is without question disgraceful and appalling and very, very wrong. I had hoped that these kind of stories were just made up rumours, maybe we have all been naïve. 

‘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.’

Rumblings: Winslet (above in 2009 with Weinstein) chimed in Monday evening admitting that she had been aware of the rumors throughout the years but did not believe them

Speaking out: Meryl Streep has released a lengthy statement four days after a bombshell report detailed Harvey Weinstein’s decades of sexual harassment (pair above in 2012)

Movie legends Meryl Streep and Judi Dench led a chorus of outrage Monday following the revelation that Harvey Weinstein had sexually harassed women for decades, as Hollywood stood accused of covering up a pattern of misconduct that finally cost the film mogul his job.

Many had been waiting for Streep to comment given her past praise of Weinstein, who she referred to as ‘God’ at the 2012 Golden Globes while accepting her Best Actress award for playing Margaret Thatcher in ‘The Iron Lady.’ 

Streep revealed in her statement however that she had no idea about the incidents of sexual harassment described by a woman in the Times piece. 

‘The disgraceful news about Harvey Weinstein has appalled those of us whose work he championed, and those whose good and worthy causes he supported,’ said Streep.

‘The intrepid women who raised their voices to expose this abuse are our heroes. 

‘Harvey supported the work fiercely, was exasperating but respectful with me in our working relationship, and with many others with whom he worked professionally.

‘I didn’t know about these other offenses. I did not know about his financial settlements with actresses and colleagues. I did not know about his having meetings in his hotel room, his bathroom, or other inappropriate, coercive acts.’ 

She continued: ‘And If everybody knew, I don’t believe that all the investigative reporters in the entertainment and the hard news media would have neglected for decades to write about it.’

Streep closed out by one again denouncing Weinstein’s actions and applauding the women who spoke. 

‘The behavior is inexcusable, but the abuse of power familiar,’ said Streep.

‘Each brave voice that is raised, heard and credited by our watchdog media will ultimately change the game.’

Unaware: Judi Dench (above in 2005 with Weinstein) whose film career was launched by Weinstein, said that she too was unaware of this harassment and that her thoughts were with the victims

Glenn Close, who has worked with Weinstein a number of times in the past, most notably in the 2005 animated film ‘Hoodwinked’ and its sequel, also slammed the shamed producer. 

She said: ‘I’m sitting here, deeply upset, acknowledging to myself that, yes, for many years, I have been aware of the vague rumors that Harvey Weinstein had a pattern of behaving inappropriately around women,’ said Close in a statement to The New York Times.

‘Harvey has always been decent to me, but now that the rumors are being substantiated, I feel angry and darkly sad.

Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and Kate Winslet

‘I’m angry, not just at him and the conspiracy of silence around his actions, but also that the “casting couch” phenomenon, so to speak, is still a reality in our business and in the world: the horrible pressure, the awful expectation put on a woman when a powerful, egotistical, entitled bully expects sexual favors in exchange for a job,’ said Close.

‘Ours is an industry in which very few actors are indispensable and women are cast in far fewer roles than men, so the stakes are higher for women and make them more vulnerable to the manipulations of a predator.’

Judi Dench also spoke out on Monday in a statement to Newsweek.

‘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 offences which are, of course, horrifying, and I offer my sympathy to those who have suffered, and wholehearted support to those who have spoken out,’ said Dench.

It was a powerful statement from the 82-year-old, whose movie career was launched by Weinstein 20 years ago and netted her seven Oscar nominations in the past two decades, with a win in 1999 for ‘Shakespeare in Love.’ 

Weinstein was fired late Sunday from his own film studio, three days after a bombshell New York Times report alleged that the Oscar-winning producer behind such hits as The King’s Speech and The Artist had preyed on young women hoping to break into the film industry.

Weinstein’s accusers – who reportedly include celebrities such as Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd – say the 65-year-old tycoon had promised to help advance their careers in exchange for sexual favors, pressuring them to massage him and watch him naked.

The Weinstein Company’s board said it had sacked him ‘in light of new information about misconduct’ in the explosive Times article, which detailed decades of legal settlements stemming from harassment allegations.