The second trial of deposed Hollywood magnate Harvey Weinstein, accused of rape and sexual assault, enters the heart of the matter on Monday in Los Angeles, with the expected opening of the proceedings. The 70-year-old producer, with great award-winning hits like “Pulp Fiction” or “The Artist”, has already been sentenced in New York where he has been serving a 23-year prison sentence since 2020, also for rape and sexual assault. A verdict that was a major event for the #Metoo movement.
This time Harvey Weinstein faces eleven counts for acts allegedly committed on five women in hotels in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles between 2004 and 2013. This trial opened on October 10 by the selection of jurors, finalized on Thursday. The jury will include a total of nine men and three women who will decide whether or not to worsen the fate of the former kingmaker of American cinema.
Nearly 90 charges
If found guilty, Harvey Weinstein – who has pleaded not guilty to all counts – could be sentenced to more than 100 additional years behind bars. After an initial rejection by the court, the New York Supreme Court finally allowed the former producer in August to appeal his 2020 conviction, bringing a new dimension to the Los Angeles trial.
In total, nearly 90 women including Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow and Rosanna Arquette have accused Harvey Weinstein of harassment, sexual assault, or rape. But the statute of limitations has been exceeded in many of these cases, some of which date back to 1977. The ex-producer is also charged in the United Kingdom with sexual assaults which date back to 1996.
A figure of Hollywood
Among the five accusers – who will all testify in Los Angeles under the pseudonym “Jane Doe” – is Jennifer Siebel Newsom, wife of Democratic Governor of California Gavin Newsom. The former producer has always assured that all his accusers were consenting, while his lawyer argues that there is no forensic evidence or credible witness to support the charges.
The new trial of Harvey Weinstein also coincides with the premiere of the film “She Said”, presented last week at the New York Film Festival and which traces the investigation of two journalists from the New York Times on the all-powerful producer. Before his fall, his influence on Hollywood was immense. Over the years, films produced by Harvey Weinstein, like Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds,” have received more than 300 Oscar nominations and 81 statuettes.