The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has expelled Harvey Weinstein, it said on Saturday, amid mounting sexual harassment, assault and rape accusations against the disgraced Hollywood mogul.
An emergency meeting of its board “voted well in excess of the required two-thirds majority,” it said in a statement.
“We do so not simply to separate ourselves from someone who does not merit the respect of his colleagues but also to send a message that the era of willful ignorance and shameful complicity in sexually predatory behaviour and workplace harassment in our industry is over,” the statement read.
An avalanche of claims have surfaced since the publication last week of an explosive New York Times report alleging a history of abusive behaviour by Weinstein dating back decades.
On Thursday, American actress Rose McGowan became the fourth woman to accuse the 65-year-old movie mogul of raping her.
“What’s at issue here is a deeply troubling problem that has no place in our society,” said the Academy.
“The board continues to work to establish ethical standards of conduct that all Academy members will be expected to exemplify.”
The Producers Guild of America was also to meet to “consider disciplinary proceedings and the status of his membership,” a source close to the union told AFP.
An avalanche of claims have surfaced since the publication last week of an explosive New York Times report alleging a history of abusive behaviour by Weinstein dating back decades.
On Thursday, American actress Rose McGowan, became the fourth woman to accuse the 65-year-old movie mogul of raping her.
More than two dozen actresses including Mira Sorvino, Rosanna Arquette, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie and Lea Seydoux have come forward saying they were sexually harassed by the producer.
READ ALSO: Harvey Weinstein: Floodgates open as Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie say they were similarly harassed
The latest allegations involved the former Bond Girl Eva Green, whose mother told French radio Weinstein had harassed her daughter for months, and British actress Alice Evans, who penned an essay for The Telegraph claiming she had rejected his advances, and believes it may have harmed her career.
Weinstein was seen in public for the first time in days when paparazzi descended upon him as he left his daughter’s home in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
“Guys, I’m not doing OK but I’m trying,” he said in a video obtained by ABC. “I got to get help. You know what, we all make mistakes.”
As he climbed into an oversized sports utility vehicle, he said he hoped people would give him “a second chance.”
Celebrity gossip portal TMZ reported that Weinstein later flew to rehab in Arizona, possibly at The Meadows, a facility near Phoenix where golfer Tiger Woods and supermodel Kate Moss have been treated.
Weinstein’s brother and business partner Bob told The Hollywood Reporter in an emotional interview published Saturday that he knew the tycoon was a cheater, but said he was unaware the extent of his “sick and depraved” behaviour.
“For me, I thought he was literally just going out there cheating in a pervasive way,” he is quoted as saying.
“It wasn’t like he even had a mistress. It was one after another and that I was aware of. But as far as being in a room and hearing the description in The New York Times? No way.”
