tv Frontline PBS December 18, 2019 4:00am-5:01am PST
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>> ♪ >> harvey!ck (cameras clig) >> tonight, on frontline... >> more than 60 won have come forward to accuse weinstein of sexual harassment, assault and rape. >> by thmid 90s we were aware of what he was alleged to be doing. >> weinstein has repeatedly denied allegations of non-consensual sex. >> he believed, thatng he was go be untouchable. >> narrator: ...the story of how harvey weinstein silenced his accusers. >> harvey weinstein had an incredibly complex machine designed to maintain silence around this. >> i just remember feeling so powerless and furious... >> ...large pay outs, nondisclosure agreements... a
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>>olutely in fear ofal death i was not lowed to talk to a journalist. >> ...an array of prive investigation firms. >> they completely destroyed me and my image. >> he had one of the most powerfulegal teams in the country. >> he got very angry and said, "i've investigated you and you're not so cln so be careful". >> narrator: the insiders spimking out for the first t >> it was the company that waste complely and utterly ruled by harvey. and harvey was a dictator. >> narrator: about what hollywood knew...nk >> i tooking back that i did know and i chose to suppress it. i chose to hide from that fact.n >> narrator:ht, a "frontline" special, "weinstein." >> frontline is made possible by ation from viewers like you. thank you. and by the corporation for public broadcasting. major support is provided by the
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john d. ancatherine t. macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. more information is available at macfound.org. the ford foundation, working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide. at ford foundation.org. additional support is provided by the abrs foundation, committed to excellence in journalism.io the park found dedicated to heightening public awareness of critical issues. the john and helen glessner family trust. supporting trustworthyt journalism tforms and inspires. and by the frontline journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler. ♪ >> i wasust starting my career, it was the early '90s. i was just out of acting schoolo going on aud and pounding the pavement.
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♪ the first time i met him was in the miramax office, and it was a, you know, a legitimate meeting set up by my agents. the first moments of that meeting were very easy, breezy, casual. you know, "welcome to the miramax family." and i felt very much like he was going to take care of me.th an he said, "there's a screening this afternoon of one of our movies, you know, you should come. have my car come pick y up." ♪ once i got there i realized it wasn't a special screening with cast and crew, it was just a movie. wanted to leave, he sort of ."id, "oh i'll take you ho we ended up stopping at his house. and then i-i ended up going up
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probably against my better judgment.we once i was in therad another hour-long conversationnd about moviesilm. and he went into the other room and he came back with.... with a robe on, and the robe was just like an open robe.lo i didn't eve to see, you know. i was just so stunned.no there was uave moves or anything, like there was just a really weird, awkward, "will you give me a massage?" i had to say just "no, and i-- i'm not comfortable." he left the room and he came back and he was just fully naked. i thought, "he's coming after me." (sighs) um... i just remember so of darting back and forth trying to get past him. you know in that moment that
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you may not make it. i told him that i was furious, i said, you know, i said, "i can't believe you're doing this to me. i don't know if he heard me, but , i don't know. mit have heard (sniffles) i mean, i do... i was able toay finally get a... a wut. i knew that if i went up againsi harveytein, i mean, just instinctually, i'd be squashed.. so i was sca and so i didn't say anything to the people that might have been able to help me. >> narrator: katherine kendallf is oneer a hundred women who have come forward with
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allegations against harvey weinstein since october 2017. many of these men are now suing him. weinstein declined to bed. intervie but through his spokeswoman, he provided "frontline" with written responses to the allegations in this film. he denies any criminal conduct. >> harvey weinstein was one of the most powerful people i hollywood for decades, and he was a darling of the american political rld. any time you have a story like this where people are gettin hurt over decades and decades, there are people around who knew enough and could have done more to stop it. >> i think this is a momentous reckong. but, frankly, i think there's so much more to discover. who knew about this?ve how much of a up was this?
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♪ >> it began in buffalo, it all began in buffalo. it was a brash, young fellow from flushing, queens, who arrived here as an 18-year-old freshman at the university of buffalo. i believe he only put in a yea before he was just kind of mesmerized by all of the opportunities that awaited him here. ♪ >> narrator: weinstein built up a successful concert promotion business. then, in 1980, he made his first film. ♪ >> it was a gory film about a guy that comes back for revenge and murde people at the
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camp. (screaming) >> narrator: 24-year-old paula wachowiak worked on the film as an intern. one day, she says, she was asked to take some checks to a hotel room foreinstein to sign. >> he was standing there and hen had a hand towel ahis waist.ed i haim the folder and he dropped the hand towel, and all the while he's asking me questions about checks. and he, at some point, sat down on the bed, and he plopped the folder on his lap, and then he started saying, hat about this one," and he's pointing. and i'm not gonna look down so i say, "whicone is that, harvey?" then he said, "i have a-a crick in my shoulder," he said, ould you give me a massage, could you rub it out for me?"
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and at that point i looked at him and i said, "harvey, i don't think that's in my job description." >> narrator: another young woman working on the film,uza maher-wilson, says weinstein approached her at a party after filming nished. this is the first time she's spoken publicly about it. >> there was a hotel room right off the lobb and that's when he like lured me in there to give him a massage. and i agreed, being aol 23-yeanaïve, trusting young woman. he, said, "i'm going to the vatory." and i said, "okay." and then i... he came out and he was naked with a towel and it was a little shocking. and i just said, "i'm sorry, this isn't... is isn't what i signed on for."
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and,-i left the room immediately. >> narrator: weinstein has since mesaid in a statement, "i f that was the culture t0s. denies paula wachowiak'stline," account, and disagrees on ther- details of suza malson's account. >> i told probably a handful of people, but no one seemed shocked 'cause he was the we all felt it was typical of someone in a position of power to wield that overounger, younger girls. >> ion't think anyone would have listened to me. i don't think it would have mattered. i'm not famous. i didn't think that my story meant anything to anybody.
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>> narrator: weinstein soon left buffalo for new york city. miramax-- the film company he founded along with his brother bob-- was expanding. they saw themselves as artists, outsiders to the hollywood system. >> at miramax we're not under that corporate pressure to say, year.", we've got to go up we can do what we think is good and if our profits are lower next year than they were the year before, so what? so what, as long as we did good work ♪ its name with movies tny made mainstream studios ignored. weinstein's power was growing, and he was working with top hollywood actresses. (radio chatter) >> come on, we got him. >> narrator: in 1992, sean young, who was already known fol moike "blade runner," starved in his latest film "lo crimes." >> who the (bleep) are you? >> district attorney,
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ass(bleep). i play a character who discovers this sexual predator, and then tracks them do, and then the tables are turned and is entrapped by him. the wire went out. i wanted to get him under felony and i needed it on tape. ofwas sitting in harvey's ce after the picture. and this is the only time thisev ha happened to me, he pulled his... thing out and my response was, "you know, harvey, i really wouldn't be pulling that thing out because it's really not pretty." >> narrator: in his responses, weinstein told "frontline" sean hung's account is untrue, never met her in his office or anhere else, and had nothi to do with her career.t it was the lme she would work on a miramax film.
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>> the reason i didn't get h another movie wivey weinstein was that i made him feel foolish. ♪ i was set to have a ve big career, but i upset a few important men, and the trajectory of my career went... whooo... (imitates crash) ♪ >> narrator: in 1993, miramax was bought by diey, helping weinstein become one of the most powerful producers in hollywood. disney says it was unaware oft any sexual miscondmplaints against him. but s colleagues say he was notoriously difficult to work for. >> working at miramax was like being in a cul the cult of harvey.
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it was common knowledge, everybody knew what a brutal regime it was. he workebeyond the limits of normal human beings. >> narrator: paul webster joined miramax in 1995. this is his first television interview about weinstein. >> i knew i was making a deal with the devil. i knew he was a bully, i knew he would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. i knew he had a volcanic temper. i knew he was a dangerous character. but i knew also that he was at the epicenter of where i wanted to be. >> narrator: despite his a reputatia bully, hollywood stars continued to line up to work with him. a part in one of his films could mean artistic credibility, fame, and awards. m >> olove! i thought you were dead!to
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>> nar in 1998, 26-year-old gwyneth paltrow appeared in "shakespeare in love."se (cheers and applau) ♪ nit won both her and wein oscars.>> his is a movie about life and art, and art and life combining is called magic.in >> narrator: weinsas at the top of the hollywood establishment. but a reporter with sourcein the movie industry was investigating a disturbing rumor about him. >> we had heard that gwyneth paltrow had been assaulted. we heard it from a director who was very upset about it, and wanted it to be out there. and we thought well, "yeah, you know, we gotta try and do this." but there was no path forward at that point at all. if you call their publicist and sa "i wanted to talk to gwyneth paltrow because i heard
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she was attacked by harvey weinstein," you can imagine how that phone call would go. it would be short. (laughs) >> narrator: paltrow didn't address the rumors at the time, and never accused him of assault. but she's since said that weinstein harassed her, and that she told her aand her then-boyfriend brad pitt, who w confrontnstein. >> it's a hard choice to make. her career, and i'm noinghave her for not wanting to take him on. we've seen in the aftermath, the lengths to which he would go to destroy people who tried to take him on. (indistinct chatter) >> narrator: whatever rumors had been circulating about harvey weinstein, his power only grew some of the up-and-comers whoy met him sathey were unawaren. of his reputatio >> in 1998 i was 24.
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modeling around the world, i thought i was tough. >> narrator: zoe brock met weinstein at the cannes film festival. >> we were taken into the majestic hotel to have dinner, and that was where i was satxt o harvey. ♪ >> narrator: as the evening was drawing to a close, she says weinstein offered her a ride. >> then harvey told us that he'd spoken to everybody and they were going to join us at the du cap, where he was staying, which is 30 minutes out of cannes and quite remote. >> narrator: when they arrived at his hotel, she says weinstein's entourage disappeared and her fries were nowhere to be seen. om>> my friends were neverg, that was a blatant lie. w get to the hotel room. and i remember sobering up fast.
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and then harvey walked back in and he was nak. go so he's ating, he's negotiating a massage. "i want a massage.n, comeive me a massage, give me a massage. just, you know, let me give you a massage. blah blah blah blah blah." and he's rapid fire, and he takes control of the situation. y i nwillingly let him maneuver me into his bedroom, and sat... sat on the bed. i may have even been stupid enough to lie down and he started to massage my shoulders. and within seconds i knew that, that was just not going to fly, there was no way this was happening. and i got up and i bolted into the bathroom and he chased me. but i remember locking the door
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and him being on the other side of it and banging. i screamed at him, "put your (bleep) clothes on you naughty (bleep) boy." and i meant it. and it worked. i came out of the bathroom a he was apologizing, and he... started to cry. and he said something that i have never forgotten and i never will for the rest of my days, in between his tears, "you don't like me because i'm fat." f i realt sorry for him in that moment. aat that point i had no i obviously how dangerous he really was. >> narrator: weinstein's directly dispute zoe be" do not allegaons, but say she is "publicizing her lawsuit seeking damages from mr. weinstein,
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despite the fact that she never complained to anyone at the time." but zoe brock sayshe told many people >> i told my agent. i told so many people inod hollywood-- ers, casting agents-- everyone's reaction across the board was always, "oh... yeah, harvey." >>arrator: zoe brock's age denies that she told him. ♪ but, across hollywood, many models and actresses now say they told their agents about weinstein's behavior. >> the agents had to know. the top agents had to know. and, frankly, any agent who knew eyat was happening with ha weinstein should be coming forward now explaining what happened. narrator: one of the most
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influential talent firms in hollywood, creative artists aagency, has since said i statement, "we apologize to any personhe agency let down." by now, some inside miramax had started to connectdo th about weinstein's behavior. >> my memory is that i was fully aware that harvey was a serial womanizer. there would be times when you'd be kicked out of the suite in the savoy or the peninsula hotel in l.a., and he would entertain. but it didn't take too muc brainpower to put it together that a man who was so abusive and bullying in every aspect of his life would bring that abuse into the sexual arena. i think looking back that i did know and i chose to suppress it.
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i chose to hide from that fact.b i think we were all rs. i think we were, we were all complicit. could i have done anything at thtime? well, for one, i never thought about doing anything about it. i know that i prevented my sistant being called to the savoy hotel te at night. i said, "no, you can't go." so, obviously i was aware of that. i didn't have the guts to do anything about it. i thk the deal i'd made with the devil was to my advantage. ♪ w >> narrator:ith no one in hollywood calling him out, weinstein's alleged behavior continued.of zelda perkins was onis assistants.he >>irst time that i traveled alone abroad with him, he insisted that i went into the bathroom while he had a sauna because he needed to do work,in and i refused to ghe sauna. and he said, "well i... this
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isn't working, i'm going to have a bath instead." so i tried to leave the bathroom, he said, "you can't leave, i need to... we need to get this business done." he was reeling off names of all the actresses that he had had some st of sexual relations with or who had given him massages or whatever. and i remember looking roundt him and saying, "how do you look at yourself in the mirror? how do you-- how do you do that?" and i can remember him looking back at me, utterly nonplussedan saying, "i have no problem at all." >> narrator: in 1998, s accompanied weinstein to the venice film festival, alonwith a new colleague.am >> sheto me in a very distressed state and told me that he had assaulted her, that he'd attempted to rape her. i was completely sideswiped by
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th. i went straight to harvey and confronted him about what had happened, and he swore on-on the life of his wife and children that solutely nothing had happened. >> narrator: but perkins didn't believe him. she and her colleague quit miramax and went to lawyers in london for advice. >> there didn't seem to be any recourse in terms of bringing harvey to justice. we had no physical proof, we hadn't gone to the police in... on the lido in venice. really the only option that we were given was to request damages. ♪ >> narrator: in negotiation with weinstein's lawyers, they asked0 for around000 each, and also insisted on measures that would protect miramax employees from harassment: therapy ssions for weinstein, a new hr policy, and a clause that could
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see him fired if he paid off any more women. weinstein accepted the terms on condition they sign a non-disclosure agreement, or n.d.a.we >> we weren't alto talk to anybody about the alleged behavior, but also about our time at miramax. this wasn't a normal confidentiality agreement; this wasn't us saying that weren't gonna, you know, give away corporate secrets. this was a deeply peonally binding agreement, which certainly in my colleague's case, meant that she couldn't ever speak about a huge personal trauma that happened to her. ♪ >> narrator: perkins would
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eventually decide to break her n.d.a. but her former colleague has maintained her silence. in his statement to "frontline," weinstein denies the attempted rape allegation, and says that, "ms. perkins asked for money instead of reporting her claims to the authories." >> so, you take your check and you try to deal with it as best you can, you know. he got away with it for years, just on the strength of that. ♪ >> narrator: weinsteinent on to use n.d.a.s with multiple women who accused him of sexual misconduct. in his response to "ontline," he said, "over a period of 30 years there were actually less than ten settlements ofs. harassment cla and that "none of these settlement agreements preventedi any inal from going to the police had they wished to so." u >> t of n.d.a.s on behalf of weinstein to silence womenre who to them was an
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enabling factor. it allowed him to silence complaining victims and just see it as a cost of doing business. so he knew that he hadng to fear from continuing with tha behaviorled to the problem in the first place, and again, and again, and again. >> narrator: 4 years later,li a journast at the "new yorker" magazine heard that weinstein had been settling sexual harassment claims. >> i had never encountered an reement, and you're talking about large sums of money. and each case hundred, hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> narrator: he began to investigate. then he got a name-- zelda perkins. she had moved to guatemala, but he tracked her down.
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>> i picked up the phone and this gentleman asked me directly about whether i had an agreement with harvey weinstein. >> she was really terrified-- "how'd you find me?" >> i think i might have even id, "do yohave an agreementen he with harvey?" and then panicked and was like, "no, no, i hav't... yes, i have... no, i haven't, no, i can't talk to you." i just knew that one thing that i absolutely in fear of death i was not allowed to talk to a journalist. >> narrator: perkins wouldn't agree to an interview for auletta's story, but h decided to confront weinstein. >> we were sitting in a small conference room, across fromer each ond i said, "harvey, tell me about zelda perkins." he rose, and he clenched his fists, and he raised his h shoulders, asaid, "this is a f..." you can imagine-- "an outrage," and he started
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screaming at me. so i thought he was going to throw a punch at me. so i stood up, and that point harvey started to cry. it was extraordinary. and what he'd said was, "ken, you're going to ruin m marriage, these were consensual relationships. and if you publish this you're going to destroy my-my family." t anyone to speak on theldn't record about the n.d.a.snd allegations of sexual misconduct. udhe and his editors concl they couldn't publish what he'd heard.ul >> i wish i have nailed the guy in 2002. the problem i had was that i couldn't prove it. clearly, people knew or suspected that harvey was a... was a predator, sexual predator. and-and they kept eir mouths shut. (reports shouting indistinctly) >> narrator: as weinein fended mainstream press, he w courting the tabloids.
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>> harvey liked to have a good relationship with the media, and i ess 'cause i'm a brookly guy and he's a queens guy, he took to me. and we'd spend some time on the phone, shooting the breeze about what went on last night, where were the parties, what did you do? >> narrator: gossip iter, aj benza, heard from a sourc that weinstein wasvi an affair. i calledim, and he said, "not true, not true, not true." and then he called back and said, "okay, there's something to it, let's try to work this out. >> narrator: although weinstein denies it, benza says they cut a would be paid to supply celebrity gossip that weinstein could ade with other reporters who dug up dirt on him. >> the gossip industry is run on the barter system. if i'vgot a story about you and you don't want it printed, you say, "hold it, i'll get you something better, and i'll prine the other story and ou." that's done every day, so what harvey and i were doing was something that was already-- it was always done. >> narrator: despite the rumorsu weinstein at the time,
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benza insists he never heard any sexual harassment allegations. >> i know it sounds ridiculous, but in the 20 years i knew harvey there was never a story about him going after somebody sexually. finding out now all these women are... were in some kind of hell with him, no clue, not at all. ♪ >> narrator: but other reporters in hollywood were still trying to pin down the rumors they'd heard. kim masters, who'd been writing got a meeting with wei.miramax, >> i met him at the peninsula hotel, for the first time face to face. he comes in very aggressive, yelling and screaming, "what have you heard about me?" and i sort of had is now or never thing, and i said, "i've heard you rape women." he did not seem shocked or outraged. you would expect a normal person
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to say, "i'm sorry, what? how dare you"-- and there was none of thatt all. >> narrator: in his response to "frontline," weinstein said that he wasn't shocked because he'd already heard the allegation and it was false. >> i'd heard really brutal allegations. we couldn't write abouthose, we couldn't get it on the record. i think he kind of believed, ass he did with for years to come, that he was going to be untouchable. (reporter shouting indistinctly) >> narrator: weinstein would eventually leave miramax after a series of disputes with disney he and his brother set up the weinstein company. >> quick picture, plse! >> narrator: rumorabout hisd conduct continue circulate throughout hollywood, but he kept making hits, and winning awards. >> "the king's speech." iain cning, emile sherman... >> thank you, harvey weinstein. >> and, ofourse, harvey. >> harvey, thank you for killing whoever you had to kill to get up here today.
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(laughter) >> i think the entire industry knew thahe was obsessed with young actresses, that he was a cheater on his wife, and that he "made the scene" with many women. i don't know who actually knew whatas happening. >> and the golden globe goes to... meryl streep. >> it was a time and a place where to be in his circle was to be successful. >> i just want to thank my agent, kevin huvane, and god, harvey weinstein. (laughter) >> narrator: some of hollywood's biggest stars-- like meryl streep-- have since said they were unawa of weinstein's alleged misconduct. but a handful have admittethey knew, including director quentin tarantino.he aid, "i knew enough to do more than i did." e and that, "everyo was close to harvery had heard of at least one of those inciden." >> i think there are still a lot
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of people t there who know way more about what was happening here than what they've cared to share. ay they were, in manys, the great enable for harvey's behavior. being in his grace was allowing them to make their careers more successful, but there were so many tes they should've said something, stopped something, spoken up. ♪ >> narrator: in 2011, weinsteinn ted actress jessica barth for a business meeting at the peninsula hotel in beverly hills. >> he said that there was a role in sarah jessica parker's new film. and then it very quickly shifted to asking me to give him a naked massage on the bed. i was like, "you know, i'm married." and he said-- i said, ou are too, right?" and he said, "yes, but we have... we have an arrangement."
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and i was like, "you know what, harv, about done with this conversation right now." an i left, i shut the door i burst into tears. i told my mily, and then i told seth mcfarlane, he was a close friend of mine. (cheers and applause) >> i'm seth mcfarlane, the host of the oscars. congratulations, you five ladies b longer have to pretend attracted to harvey weinstein. (laughter) >> and then was like, good, i'm glad. i'm glad he just did that. because at that point, nobod was saying anything publicly. i feel like everybody kind ofve knew about h but nobody was saying anything publicly. honestly there wasn't any reaction after that. i guess they still wanted to make movies and collect their awards and just go on their merry way. (chuckles)
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>> narrator: by 2015, allegations of harvey weinstein's sexual misconduct had been whiered among industry insiders for decades, but still hadn't become public. that was about to change. ♪ it started when ambra battana gutierrez, a 22-year-old italian model, went to the new yor police. she had just had a meeting with harvey weinstein. >> the story that she told is that shortly after she came , harvey weinstein inquired aboute whether her breasts eal or not, he groped her breasts, he reached up her skirtnd he tried to kisher. it degenerates from her coming up there to discs her career to her fighting this guy off in >> narrator: the police wanted evidence. they asked her to et weinstein again, and this time wear a
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i felt completely positive about what i'd done. they were super happy and like saying, "wow, now, this person is completely finished; you saved a t of women." >> the n.y.p.d. arranges to speak with harvey weinstein, ann he's dng that anything happened. but they felt that the accuser was credible and these charges were worth pursuing. and that's what they told the... the manhattan district attorney. >> narrator: with new york prosecutors now considering whether to press charges, und himself in a story heime couldn't suppress. >> movie mogul harvey weinstein's facing sexual rning.t allegations this >> it's on the front page of "the daily news." it's on the frt page of "the new york post." this is already a huge story. who's accusing harvey einodel of sexual abuse. >> the woman alleges that weinstein grabbed her thigh and
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chest. >> and so within 36 hours of the news coming out, this was the big story in new york city. >> when ambra gutierrez came forward with her allegation, aze machine mobito shut down these charges, and that h includvey weinsteinng hiri power lawyers. he had one of the most powerful p.r. teams in the country. ♪ te >> narrator: weinsin also employed the servis of k2, a private intelligence firm usually specializing in corporate investigations and security. no one from k2 would agree to an interview, but a former employee weinstein's request was unusual. we agreed to hide his identity ase still works in the industry. >> harvey weinstein came to k2 initially with a matter that they probably wouldn't take on if it was somebody else. nobody likes to develop information on somebody who's accusing client of sexual
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misconduct. but harvey weinstein being, harvey weinsteceions were made. >> narrator: he says k2 was tasked with investigating gutierrez' past in italy and providing the information to weinstein. >> stuff started leaking out o the weinstein camp about her past. >> she once filed a sexual assault suit against a 70ear-old "sugar daddy." >> there w a report that she had been sleeping with a 70-year-old man in return for gifts from this guy. >> it lasted for like a week, everyday something different coming out. everything was about me being a blackmailer, a prostitute. >> narrator: prosecutors asked to meet withutierrez. she had given conflicting accounts of what happened i italy.he >>were asking me questions like, "are this news real?"
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like, "you're a prostitute?" i was asking them like, "did you hear the recording?" they were like, "oh yes, i heard of it, but you have to explain this situation in italy is very confusing." i was like, "guys, i mean, i'm the victim." >> narrator: concerned how herul story woplay to a jury, the district attorney's officest announced wen would not be prosecuted. manhattan district attorney cyrus vance jr. declined to be interviewed. his office told "frontline" thes acted pronally, and that what emerged from the audio and subsequent investigati was insufficient to prove a crime under new york law. t case rose and fell entirely on a study of the reputation of the accur. everybody just focused on ambra and nobody focused on the guy that she accused. >> narrator: like other women before her, gutierrez went on to
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sign a non-disclosure agreement. she received a million dollars-- weinstein's biggest known settlement. she says the deal doesn't prevent her from giving an interview, but she can't reveal the details of the alleged sault. >> there is 18 pages, like really, really like, written in very small letters and there is a list of different things i can't do and, yeah, the first on all is s. ♪ >> narrator: although weinstein hadn't been charged, anon allegaf sexual assault was now in the public domain. inside the weinstein company, executives absorbed the ne. >> it was on the front page of th"new york post," and tho of us that heard about it and read it, kind of looked at each other. i don't think anybody was too
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surprised. tom prince, an executive who t le company last year, is speaking out for the first time. no current executives would agree to an interview. prince says he had become concerned about weinstein's use of company funds to fly women around the world. ch >> pretty n every production i would get a phone call or an email saying we movie set.y an actress to the and i would always come back and explain to them that this is a one- or two-day role, and you know, we're spending an awfu lot of money flying somebody from paris to philadelphia or from new yk to new zealand to fulfill a role that could be occupied by a local resident there. but this was a mandate from harvey. it was the company that was completely and utterly ruled by harvey. and harvey was a dictator. i thought clearly there was
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something more than the actresses' acting abilitiesh involved w flying somebody and spending $20,0 on a role that would have cost $2,000. >> narrator: in his response ton "fre", instein deniedai this andd that he and prince repeatedly clashed over budgets s.and other production iss and despite princes suspicions, he insists only ever heard vague rumors about weinstein's conduct.th >> i knew g. re innuendoes and they wereey second and third-hand. i didn't know and to be perfectly honest, i didn't give it a lot of thought because you're too buried in doing what you're trying to do, just trying survive every day. >> narrator: bob weinstein, whod the weinstein company, has also said that he and the board had nonowledge of his brother's alleged misconduct, rculating within the company.
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certain people and it wasn't just assistants it w executives in the company who did havelimpses of predatory behavior. there were hr officials who were told about his behavior within his own company, there were lawyers who were brought in toke stettlements, but it's not 100% clear exactly what went on behind the scenes of the weinstein company board in 2015, but what's clear is that thee board was aw the italian models allegation. >> narrator: in fact, soon after ambra gutierrez's settlement th weinstein in 2015, hi contract was up for renewal aimed at his behavior.e changes >> there was a new code ofth conduc was put into place that year approved by the board in which they added more explicit language on sexual harassment, they also put some terms in the contract, harvey's
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contract as well as the contract of other executives in which there would be financial penalties if they violated that code of conducand the company was required to pay, to make any payments or settlements too-- victims of that misconduct. so there were some measures to a try toress what they thought might be his misconduct at that time. ♪ n rator: with his new contract, weinstein's position t he was about to come under more pressure from an unexpected quarter. (reporters yellingndistinctly) over the years, weinstein hadli helped raise mils for amfar, the foundation for aids research. but the amfar board had become concerned. the problem was not sexual
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misconduct, but a dispute over the proceeds of a charityio auct >> there, this is fun. t >> narrato charity hired lawyer tom ajamie to investigate exactly what happened to the money. >> during the course of our investigation we had to interviepeople. we would say to them, "why did it go here, why did it go there?" the response we would get would be, "well, before we get into that, do you know at harvey weinstein rapes women? ou donow that harvey weinstein is a sexual predator?" now we had no proof of that, but this is what we were hearing a it was very disturbing. >> narrar: word about this got back to weinstein and he asked ajamie to meet him. >> he said to me, "tom, you're spreading rumors about me raping women." and my response was, "harvey, i'm not saying that, the community is saying that about yo" and at some point he got very angry and said, "you better be careful, tom, because i've
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investigated you, and you're n so clean, so be careful." ♪ >> narrator: weinstein has repeatly denied rape allegations. >> when the meeting ended,e ran up to me and got very close ease sign a non-disclosurese, agreement. please don't tell anyone. m man , don't tell anyone what you've learned about me." and i said, "harvey, i can't do that." he walked out, he got into the elevator, and as the evator doors were closing, i was looking at his face and he was lookinat my face, and i saw a was now sticking his fingers in various parts of the dike and trying to prevent the water from leaking out and the entire dam from falling and crushindown on him. >> narrator: weinstein had beeni
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trying tnce his accusers for decades. but he was now under increasing scrutiny frommu iple news organizations. >> there had long be rumors about harvey weinstein. and this was the moment in time where the "new york times" said, "let's put some investigative scle into this." and so we spent many, many weeks and many months trying to get women who had had encounters with weinstein to tell us their stories. ♪ >> narrator: in october 2017, harvey weinstein finally lost control of the story. >> now to the latest on harvey weinstein. "tng new york times" reporti allegations by numerous womensa who the hollywood mogul sexually harassed them. >> narrator: it was no longer hollywood's open secret. n it ws around the world. >> wnstein is accused of ployees and actors...male >> (reporter speaking chinese) >> (reporter speaking spanish)
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>> (reporterpeaking french) >> narrator: "the new york times" published mulple allegations of sexual harassment going back decades. t>> harvey weinstein seem conduct himself as if he was invincible. so we really kind of held our breath after the story broke wondering if it was gonna have >> narrator: further allegations-- some of assault and rape-- would follow in the "new yorker." in the following weeks, dozens more women-- some famous, some not-- would come forward. ♪ >> i had no idea of the breadth and enormity of the story, i thought he juspreyed on us. that was the most shocking thing, realizing that he was a serious predator, and he had been seriously abusing people i with totunity for all this time. (camera shutrs clicking)
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narrator: soon after the news broke, weinstein was fired from his company and went int therapy. i spoke to harvey, he doesn't sound sad and dejected,e he sounds a liit- a little bit humiliated, but i think he's gearing up for the fight. >> narrator: in a statement to frontline, weinstein's spokeswoman said while he denies any non-consensual sexual conduct, he is deeply apologetic to those offended by his behavior. se spokeswoman said "it wrong and irresponsible to conflate claims of impolitic behavior or consensual sexual contact later regretted with ann untrue claim of cr conduct, and his lawyers will respond in the appropriate legal forum with evidence disproving the claims against him." >> i think harvey's career is over.wh but you know, knows?
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anything can happen. >> narrator: as of now, policeyo in los angeles, ne and london are investigating rape and sexual assault allegations going back to the 1980s. the new york attorney general'sc office has filed aivil rights case against weinstein and the weinstein company - which declared bankruptcy and is nowro in thess of being sold.of and a grouodels and actresses is pursuing a class action lawsuit against him. >> i don't want to go down in history as harvey weinstein's assault victim, but i damnell will if it's going to help put him in jail, and it's going to change the system. i will. >> harvey, are you doing okay? >> yeah, i'm not doing okay. i'm trying. i gotta get lp, guys. you know what, we all make mistakes. second chance, i hope, okay? >> it saddens me that everybody woke up because of harvey
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weinstein.an on the othd, thank god we've woken up. >> donald trump says, "can i expect loyalty from you?" >> comey sees danger. shakedown when he sees it.ws a >> the call for a special council just gets louder. >> the justice department appointed a special counsel.ll >> bob m cares about one thing, indicting bad guys and putting them in prison. >> a president is trying to control the justice department's investigation into him. >> ...phony russia witch hunt. >> ...that's extraordinary. >> narrator: next time on frontline. >>oro to pbs.org/frontline f the latest developments on thest weinsteiy. >> any agent who knew what was happening with harvey weinstein should be coming forward now, explaining what happened... >> ...and learn more aboutnt non-disclosure agree >> there is 18 pages, a list of
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different things i can't do and thfirst of all is silence. >> connect to the "frontline" communy on facebook, twitters. and pbg/frontline. >> frontline is made possible by contributions to your pbs stion from viewers like yo thank you. public broadcasting.or major support is provided by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. more information is available at macfound.org. the ford foundation, working tth visionaries on the fr lines of social change worldwide. at ford foundation.org. additional support is provided by the abrams foundation, committed to excellence in journalism. to heightening public awareness of critical issues.jo th and helen glessner family trust. supporting trustworthy journalism that inrms and inspires. and by the frontline journalism
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fund, with major support from jon d jo ann hagler. captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wh.org >> for more on this and other programs, visit our website at pbs.org/frontline. ♪ to order frontline'sst wen on dvd visit shop pbs, or call 1-800-play-pbs. this program is also available on amazon prime video. ♪
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narrator:: it's a brand-new "nutcracker." woman: stopher wheeldon is a choreographer who had a brilliant idea to place "the nutcracker" in t. chicago world's man: he wanted to do "the nutcracker" poor people instead of rh people. working in the world's fair. bigger than a broadway musical. wor n 2: his world of thd ballet, there should be a new word for it. narrator: come behind the scenes and see the making of a new american "nutcracker." man 2: she story behind thatry, it's epic. ["russian dance" playing] announcer: "making a newame" is made possible throu the generosity of the grainger foundation of lake forest, is. [classical music playing] you're rea
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