Celebrities Speak Out Against Harvey Weinstein Amid His Sexual-Assault Allegations

"You can't buy, ‘Oh, well, I grew up in the '60s and '70s and so therefore . . .' I did, too," Tom told The New York Times. "So I think it's like, well, what do you want from this position of power? I know all kinds of people that just love hitting on, or making the lives of underlings some degree of miserable, because they can. Somebody great said this, either Winston Churchill, Immanuel Kant or Oprah: 'When you become rich and powerful, you become more of what you already are.' So I would say, there's an example of how that's true. Just because you're rich and famous and powerful doesn't mean you aren't in some ways a big fat ass. Excuse me, take away fat. But I'm not, you know, I'm not the first person to say Harvey's a bit of an ass. Poor Harvey — I'm not going to say poor Harvey, Jesus. Isn't it kind of amazing that it took this long?"

"A corrupt, powerful man wields his influence to abuse and manipulate woman. We’ve heard this infuriating, heartbreaking story countless times before. And now here we go again," Julia said in a statement to Us Weekly. "I stand firm in the hope that we will finally come together as a society against this kind of predatory behavior, to help victims find their voices and their healing, and to stop it once and for all."

"I found out about Harvey a year ago, and I'm ashamed I didn't say anything back then," Jane said in a CNN interview. "I was not that bold. I guess it hadn't happened to me, and I didn't feel it was my place."

She also revealed that she's never had a bad experience with Weinstein. "I was old, and Harvey goes for young because that's more vulnerable. I'm glad it's coming out. I'm so proud of those fellow actors that are speaking up. I know that it has taken a long time. It is a very, very, very hard thing to do. You don't get anything out of it as the person who has been victimized, but it is important that it comes out. Let's not think that this is some unique, horrific . . . This goes on all the time, this male entitlement in Hollywood and everywhere — in offices and businesses all over the world, in bars, in restaurants, in stores women are assaulted, abused, harassed."

"That was never my experience with Harvey in any way whatsoever, and I think that if people heard these stories . . . I do believe in humanity enough to think that this wouldn't have just continued," Blake told The Hollywood Reporter. "I never heard any stories like this — I never heard anything specific — but it's devastating to hear. The number one thing that can happen is that people who share their stories, people have to listen to them and trust them, and people have to take it seriously. As important as it is to remain furious about this, it's important to also say that this exists everywhere so remember to look everywhere. This isn't a single incident. This cannot happen, this should not happen, and it happens in every single industry."

"It happens to women all over the place, all the time, to the point where women don't even think that this is a real assault," she continued. "I've had plenty of things happen to me whether it be trying on a dress for prom at some clothing store, to a director being inappropriate, to a guy walking down the street where you don't think, 'Oh well, that wasn't actually sexual assault — this guy just, like, grabbed my butt.' 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.'"

"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," Kate told Variety. "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.

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. His behavior is without question disgraceful and appalling and very, very wrong. I had hoped that these kind of stories were just made up rumors, maybe we have all been naive. 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."

"It's indefensible. That's the only word you can start with," George said in a statement to The Daily Beast. "Harvey's admitted to it, and it's indefensible. I've known Harvey for 20 years. He gave me my first big break as an actor in films on From Dusk Till Dawn, he gave me my first big break as a director with Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. 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."

"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," Glenn told 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.

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.

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. I applaud the monumental courage of the women who have spoken up. I hope that their stories and the reportage that gave them their voices represents a tipping point, that more stories will be told and that change will follow.

The changes must be both institutional and personal. Men and women, in positions of power, must create a work environment in which people, whose jobs depend on them, feel safe to report threatening and inappropriate behavior, like that reported in the Times. No one should be coerced into trading personal dignity for professional success. I feel the time is long and tragically overdue for all of us in the industry, women and men, to unite — calmly and dispassionately — and create a new culture of respect, equality and empowerment, where bullies and their enablers are no longer allowed to prosper."

During an interview with the New York Times, Gwyneth alleged that she was sexually harassed by Harvey when she was 22. After getting cast as the lead in the Jane Austen adaptation Emma, the actress said that the film producer invited her to his hotel suite for a work meeting. However, things took a turn when Harvey allegedly put his hands on Gwyneth and suggested they head into the bedroom for massages. "I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified," she said of the incident. She confided in her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt, who later confronted Harvey at a movie premiere. Following the encounter, Gwyneth claims that Harvey warned her to never tell anyone about what happened. "I thought he was going to fire me," she said.

"The disgraceful news about Harvey Weinstein has appalled those of us whose work he championed, and those whose good and worthy causes he supported," Meryl told the HuffPost. The intrepid women who raised their voices to expose this abuse are our heroes.

One thing can be clarified. Not everybody knew. 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. 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.

The behavior is inexcusable, but the abuse of power familiar. Each brave voice that is raised, heard and credited by our watchdog media will ultimately change the game."

"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 wholehearted support to those who have spoken out," Judi told Newsweek.

"I had a bad experience with Harvey Weinstein in my youth, and as a result, chose never to work with him again and warn others when they did," Angelina told the New York Times. "This behavior towards women in any field, any country, is unacceptable."

The actress, who worked with Harvey on movies like The Aviator and Carol, released a statement about the allegations, saying, "Any man in a position of power or authority who thinks it's his prerogative to threaten, intimidate, or sexually assault any woman he encounters or works alongside needs to be called to account. It is never easy for a woman to come forward in such situations and I wholeheartedly support those who have."

"I was deeply disturbed to hear the news about Harvey Weinstein's behavior," Jennifer said in a statement. "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. 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."

"I am utterly disgusted by the continuing revelations of Harvey Weinstein's horrifying and unforgivable actions," Benedict said in a statement. "We need to collectively stand up and support victims of abuse such as the brave and inspiring women who have spoken out against him and say we hear you and believe you. That way others may be emboldened by our support to come forward and speak. But we shouldn't wait until there are any more stories like this. We, as an industry and as a society at large, need to play our part. There has to be zero tolerance of any such behavior in any walk of life. We owe that to these women's bravery in coming forward."

"When I first started to work as an actress, I was working on a film and I received a call from Harvey Weinstein asking if I had slept with any of the women I was seen out with in the media," Cara wrote in a lengthy Instagram post. "It was a very odd and uncomfortable call . . . I answered none of his questions and hurried off the phone but before I hung up, he said to me that if I was gay or decided to be with a woman, especially in public, that I'd never get the role of a straight woman or make it as an actress in Hollywood. A year or two later, I went to a meeting with him in the lobby of a hotel with a director about an upcoming film. 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. When I arrived I was relieved to find another woman in his room and thought immediately I was safe. He asked us to kiss and she began some sort of advances upon his direction. I swiftly got up and asked him if he knew that I could sing. And I began to sing . . . I thought it would make the situation better . . . more professional . . . like an audition . . . I was so nervous. After singing I said again that I had to leave. He walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips. I stopped him and managed to get out of the room. I still got the part for the film and always thought that he gave it to me because of what happened. Since then I felt awful that I did the movie. I felt like I didn't deserve the part. I was so hesitant about speaking out . . . I didn't want to hurt his family. I felt guilty as if I did something wrong. I was also terrified that this sort of thing had happened to so many women I know but no one had said anything because of fear. I want women and girls to know that being harassed or abused or raped is NEVER their fault and not talking about it will always cause more damage than speaking the truth. I am relieved to be able to share this . . . I actually feel better and I'm proud of the women who are brave enough to speak . . . this isn't easy but there are strength in our numbers. As I said, this is only the beginning. In every industry and especially in Hollywood, men abuse their power using fear and get away with it. This must stop. The more we talk about it, the less power we give them. I urge you all to talk and to the people who defend these men, you are part of the problem."

"Coming forward about sexual abuse and coercion is scary and women have nothing to be gained personally by doing so," the actress wrote on Twitter. "But through their bravery we move forward as a culture, and I thank them. Stand with @AshleyJudd @rosemcgowan and others."

"Let's be clear. What Harvey Weinstein did to those women was nothing short of abuse," Olivia wrote on Twitter. "I am disturbed, and disgusted. It's appalling. Though I never witnessed it, I stand in solidarity with his victims, and hope their bravery sends a loud message to all abusers of power. The victim blaming needs to stop. As does the shaming of women who didn't come forward earlier. They spoke, and we are here to listen."

In a post by the New York Times, the actress alleged that the producer once invited her to his hotel room for a meeting, where he was waiting in a bathrobe. He asked her for a massage and when she refused, asked if she would want to watch him take a shower instead. "I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask," Ashley recalled. "It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining."