Harvey Weinstein scandal: Amazon Studios chief Roy Price suspended amid Harvey Weinstein allegations (Page 1 of 12)

“Amazon Studios chief Roy Price has been suspended amid claims he ‘ignored’ allegations Harvey Weinstein raped actress Rose McGowan. … It comes as Price faces a separate allegation from producer Isa Hackett, who claims the Amazon Studio chief inappropriately propositioned her in the back of taxi in 2015.”

“In a statement, Amazon said it had placed Price on a leave of absence effective immediately. It added: ‘We are reviewing our options for the projects we have with The Weinstein Co.’”

“The 39-year-old former Hear’Say singer allegedly rejected Weinstein during a film festival lunch at Cannes in 2010. … A friend of Klass told The Sun that Weinstein wanted to silence her with a ‘confidentiality agreement’ as he assumed the pair would have sex. Klass declined the offer telling him to ‘f*** off’ and left the lunch meeting at feeling ‘disgusted and angry’.”

“According to Ronan Farrow, who this week penned one of the more explosive reports to come from the saga in The New Yorker, Weinstein used what he calls ‘the honey pot’ technique. ‘A female executive with the company described how Weinstein assistants and others served as a ‘honey pot’—they would initially join a meeting, but then Weinstein would dismiss them, leaving him alone with the woman,’ Farrow reported. … It’s a story actress and model Cara Delevingne detailed on Instagram:

“‘The director left the meeting and Harvey asked me to stay and chat with him. As soon as we were alone he began to brag about all the actresses he had slept with and how he had made their careers and spoke about other inappropriate things of a sexual nature. He then invited me to his room. I quickly declined and asked his assistant if my car was outside.’ She said it wasn’t and wouldn’t be for a bit and I should go to his room. At that moment I felt very powerless and scared but didn’t want to act that way hoping that I was wrong about the situation.’”

“Harvey Weinstein may have been fired illegally by The Weinstein Company, a company that wrote a contract that said Weinstein could get sued over and over for sexual harassment and as long as he shelled out money, that was good enough for the Company. … TMZ is privy to Weinstein’s 2015 employment contract, which says if he gets sued for sexual harassment or any other ‘misconduct’ that results in a settlement or judgment against TWC, all Weinstein has to do is pay what the company’s out, along with a fine, and he’s in the clear. According to the contract, if Weinstein ‘treated someone improperly in violation of the company’s Code of Conduct,’ he must reimburse TWC for settlements or judgments. Additionally, ‘You [Weinstein] will pay the company liquidated damages of $250,000 for the first such instance, $500,000 for the second such instance, $750,000 for the third such instance, and $1,000,000 for each additional instance.’ The contract says as long as Weinstein pays, it constitutes a ‘cure’ for the misconduct and no further action can be taken. Translation—Weinstein could be sued over and over and as long as he wrote a check, he keeps his job.”

“Hollywood’s de facto governing body, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, voted overwhelmingly on Saturday to ‘immediately expel’ Harvey Weinstein, breaking with 90 years of precedent and turning one of the biggest Oscar players in history into a hall-of-fame pariah. The academy’s 54-member board of governors made the decision at an emergency session after investigations by The New York Times and The New Yorker that revealed sexual harassment and rape allegations against him going back decades. In a statement, the academy said the vote was ‘well in excess of the required two-thirds majority.’”

“Although largely symbolic, the ouster of Mr. Weinstein from the roughly 8,400-member academy is stunning because the organization is not known to have taken such action before—not when Roman Polanski, a member, pleaded guilty in a sex crime case involving a 13-year-old girl; not when women came forward to accuse Bill Cosby, a member, of sexual assault; and not when Mel Gibson went on anti-Semitic tirade during a drunken-driving arrest in 2006 or pleaded no contest to a charge of battery against an old girlfriend in 2011. Now, the academy may be forced to contend with other problem members.”

“Scotland Yard is looking into five allegations of sexual assault by three women against the disgraced Hollywood movie producer Harvey Weinstein in Britain.”