As I mentioned in a previous story, the Guardian compiled a list of prominent men in Hollywood who refused to comment publicly on the Harvey Weinstein situation. The Guardian’s list was of men who have professional contacts now or in the past with Weinstein or The Weinstein Company. After the Guardian published their story, the men did start speaking. George Clooney gave a lengthy interview to the Daily Beast. Other men have issued statements on Twitter. Lin Manuel Miranda was one of the men name-checked by the Guardian, and I wondered why at first, because I didn’t remember Lin having any kind of connection to Weinstein. As it turns out, TWC bought the rights to Lin’s In the Heights, the Tony-Award-winning musical Lin wrote before Hamilton. Apparently, people have been yelling at Lin on Twitter about Weinstein, and he finally said something:
Forgive me.
Just woke up to this–I'd asked my reps to keep any press non-🇵🇷relief-related off my desk.
That's my fault. https://t.co/0bvwPFpBnh— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) October 10, 2017
I'm as appalled and repulsed by the Weinstein news as anyone with a beating heart. And forever in awe of the bravery of those who spoke out.
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) October 10, 2017
Yeah. Some guys are more deserving of criticism than others. Lin wasn’t waiting until Weinstein was fired, he was literally devoting the past three weeks to trying to do everything he could do for Puerto Rico. I kind of feel like we should be apologizing to him for even demanding that he make a statement.
Also, I didn’t get a chance to fit this in anywhere else, but here’s the letter Weinstein sent to studio heads and CEOs before he was sh-tcanned.
JUST IN: Weinstein's desperate email to Hwood CEOs, moguls hours before his firing. Read to me by a disgusted (male) recipient pic.twitter.com/wQA64WcKf7
— Janice Min (@janicemin) October 9, 2017
Photos courtesy of Getty.
I just love that they’ve finally turned their back on him!
But he must be deluded to think after his dirty Oscar campaigns and all round appalling treatment of anyone beneath him, that he’d have any support among rival studios……..
Actually, I think if women hadn’t added their own experiences with him, on the record, after the story was published, they WOULD have supported him – at least privately. Hollywood is an old boys club, and Harvey has made a lot of enemies but he has also made a lot of people a LOT of money.
as a woman in recovery myself, it makes me SICK SICK SICK that these douchbag sleeze ball abusive predatory a..holes use the language of recovery when they get caught for their icky self serving behaviour. Harvey needs heavy therapy as an in patient somewhere? like his egomaniacalism is a deseise just like alcoholism or gambling? ahhhhhhh!!! am I the only person that this deeply offends? it’s the whole sex addict thing. I saw ‘shame’ which was a searing account of what sex addiction can do to someones soul and sense of self. now if a celebrity gets caught cheating ( like hale berrys ex) it’s like ‘oh I have this terrible addiction. please be patient while I get help’.
Harvey used his position of power to control and demean women who couldn’t say no or tell on him. he got off on that power as well as getting off in the potted plant. yuck. shut the f..k up and stop co opting the language of addiction
Moe, I appreciate what you are saying (and more power to you in recovery), but I just want to say that illness and addiction (including sex addiction) can impact anyone – these things are not mutually exclusive with wealth etc.
While I accept that many people use addiction as an ‘excuse’, I also don’t think its fair to intimate that everyone famous does so. There are plenty of examples of celebrities who have truly struggled with addiction and mental health difficulties – an obvious example is Demi Lovato.
Personally I think it is insulting and hugely problematic when people use addiction/illness as an ‘excuse’, but at the same time I think it is part and parcel of the extent to which we devour famous people’s personal information. I’m not defending, by the way, just saying that there is more to this..
Clare
i get what youre saying but please don’t misinterpret what I said. I totally agree of course that famous wealthy people aren’t immune to addiction and mental health issues. I am completely respectful and grateful for people like demi lavato for speaking so candidly about her struggles. addiction thrives on secrecy and it’s so important that people know there is help and you’re not alone. I also completely believe there is such a thing as sex addiction. I heard a therapist once say that it is one of the hardest illnesses to treat because it is so destructive and intimate – going to the core of our breing and relationships. I also think there are men (and women) that have deep rooted difficulties with relationships. they are often the people that sabatoge their relationships and destroy their chances of real and lasting intimacy. and I think therapy can perhaps help those who seek change
But this is different. this was and is about power and control and abuse. Harvey settled eight times meaning the conversation was there to be had eight times with those around him who knew what happened. this was and is about entitlement – a powerful man’s entitlement over less powerful women. if he really had a psycolgical compulsion that he could not control he WOULD have pulled the same shit on more famous and powerful women like Streep and paltrow and some big wigs wife that would have gotten him in real trouble.
my problem is with people like him using recovery speak and ideas as a way to excuse themselves of bad behaviour. this doesn’t just happen with rich famous people btw. I see people do this in ordinary life as well. it’s just in this case Harvey’s ass was on the line and I’m just a bit p….off to see him try to use it as a life line.
@Moe, @Clare – I think I am agreeing with you both, but please correct me if I am wrong.
I always thought with any kind of addiction you honestly cannot control yourself. But Weinstein can and has controlled himself – in that he did not assault every woman he worked with or found attractive, just those he thought were vulnerable?
@Clare – agree. I doubt very much if any of this is coming from a place of integrity or genuine disgust at the revelations. While Weinstein’s enemies will no doubt be doing a happy jig at his comeuppance, I bet there are an equal number of influential industry people seriously pissed off at him, not for the predatory monster he’s been revealed as, but for upsetting the complacent applecart.
Money and self-interest rules.
Lin is doing God’s work right now so issuing a statement about Weinstein should be secondary.
Weinstein’s pathetic letter to his colleagues asking for help is so typical of a serial abuser & bully. I’m so glad one of his “colleagues” turned it over to the press.
He hasn’t tweeted anything except PR for the last 3 weeks or so. I didn’t expect that to change. Also love how they pick out the one minority male and one that is essentially brand new to Hollywood to yell at.
Surprising? I think not
I was surprised to see LMM’s name among the directors on The Guardians list of power players who haven’t commented on Weinstein. I don’t know if he’s a director, firstly, also they haven’t actually worked together yet. Nevertheless I am glad to see his response – I’d have been kinda devastated if Lin wasn’t a good egg after all.
TWC is producing a film adaptation of Lin’s show In The Heights.
ETA: Jay Z is a producer on it as well. I’d still love to know what he thinks of Harvey dropping his name in that atrocious statement.
I think Lin may be the best egg out there. He is such a role model in these dark days.
+1, love him.
I didn’t do anything wrong but I need therapy
I didn’t do anything wrong but I’m sorry
I didn’t do anything wrong but let me talk about Ashley Judd’s mental issues
I didn’t do anything wrong and now I’m the victim because the board is trying to fire me
I didn’t do anything wrong and the board is illegally ousting me!
Malignant Narcissist Psychopath Playing the Victim and Projecting, Projecting, Projecting
add
I didn’t do anything wrong and I’m suing the newspaper that broke the story
Ah I dont really need a statement from him. He is clearly involved in Puerto Rico right now. If this was a different time I could see the need but now its really more important than a guy writing two tweets.
Aw Lin Manuel I forgive you for the tardy comment. Seriously he is doing more than Orangino and his lap dogs. Leave him alone.
So is harvey done? And who is responsible for his downfall? Is it really his brother behind all this?
I would say his brother and the board are behind it. I suspect more costly payouts are in the works and they’ve had enough. Plus, Harvey isn’t the all-powerful Hollywood mogul he once was. The stars aligned and they took him down. It was a long time coming, but I’m not so sure his brother will walk away unscathed.
I’m sure it’s 100% power/money-related. His abusive past is imo just a handy hook to hang him out to dry on. I doubt the company cared a whit about his behaviour – or the victims of it – as long as it wasn’t costing them money or compromising them publicly.
It’s all so self-servingly sordid.
This. If they were ousting him for his behavior, they’d have done it decades ago. He’s lost some of the power in the industry he once had and is costing them money. End of story.
I think this news is recent enough that people should be given time to respond, take a few days like Lin. Better a delayed but thoughtful response than woman-shaming garbage like Donna Karan spewed.
Related to Weinstein’s plea for therapy as an option: does anyone know if therapy can actually help someone with major issues with women? I’ve been using my internet detective skills, but not found anything about this. Maybe it’s all just about the person actually wanting to change, and if they think they ‘did nothing wrong’ it’s unlikely they’ll put in the effort to change? I ask because my coworker was recently fired for sexually harassing me, and still denies about half the allegations. The company said if he goes to therapy, to show he’s proactive in changing his ways, he’ll be welcome back in a few months (regardless of my feelings on the issue). I’m struggling to see how anyone can prove they’ve actually changed, versus putting in a good show to save their job.
I am so sorry you went through that. I would find that traumatic, but I am so sensitive to that kind of stuff. I am glad your company acted.
I asked a variation of the same question as you above. People like Weinstein say it is faulty thinking that made them harass someone, or they even blame sex addiction, but the fact is Harvey and harassers can control themselves. I doubt they would harass a female boss or the Duchesses of Cambridge or York, know what I mean? It is always about power imbalance.
I think whatever therapy the harasser might receive tries to focus on empathy but if the person is born without as much (it happens), it is very hard to change that. And I don’t know how you prove you have developed empathy, except I think there are some really extensive (like once or twice a week for a year) programs that are supposed to help, yet not clinically proven. Cannot remember the program names.
I don’t know what to tell you, except I have been in your shoes and it sucks. Hope it works out in a way that makes you feel safe and sane.
I’ve actually never seen anyone with such strong predatory behavior “change” for the longterm. I’ve seen it controlled somewhat, but the recidivism rate is pretty high.
I love (nope) all the insistence that people “say something”. Like the media didn’t know this story all along and not cover it. Like powerful men behaving in predatory ways is something new. Like we didn’t elect a predator to the highest office in the land. Like a DA didn’t refuse to prosecute a predator. Like women didn’t rise up to say #YesAllWomen only to get slapped back with #NotAllMen.
My favorite hot take is from The Hollywood Reporter saying that “Jessica Chastain Admits She Knew”. She was warned to avoid being alone with him for her own safety. What woman hasn’t gotten that kind of warning at some point in her life? You gonna tell me that THR didn’t know?
So TWC buys the rights to ITH and Lin is somehow pressured/shamed into making a statement? Some of these are ridiculous. He didn’t need to. Like at all. His connection to Harvey is far more removed than someone who has actually worked or befriended the guy. It’s inconsequential.
Lin has been busy busting his ass with relief efforts for PR. A far more personal situation to him than reading about somehow being attached to a corporation that purchases the rights to his work. Yay he spoke out, I guess, but he didn’t need to other than to offer his opinion and condemning said behavior as an aside or something.
I agree. It’s nice that he did issue a statement of his support, but it’s not like these allegations are about Andrew Lloyd Webber or Stephen Sondheim. And it’s not like LMM co-wrote “Good Will Hunting” with Ben Affleck, if you know what I’m saying.
People like to give passes to their favorites, but he is hardly under a rock.
Lin has been heavily involved in helping those devastated by a natural disaster. Lin’s own family was affected by the hurricane. And he is more Broadway than Hollywood, so I can see why it took him a few days to say anything,
Ugh. No one owes you a statement. Or a comment. Or anything else.
Lin Manuel-Miranda, from everything I’ve seen, has zero connection with Harvey Weinstein beyond both being male and, generally, working in the entertainment industry. Calling him, or anyone, out for not commenting is … Bizarre.
Lin-Manuel Miranda is one of the good guy. Thank God for him.
What is this “finally” stuff in the headline? LMM has been killing himself trying to help Puerto Rico and his family. Give the guy a break for not being up on all the news 24/7.
I don’t care for the idea that anyone “has” to speak out on this if they weren’t even a part of the issue. People have their own lives to live, celebrity or not. If they have an opinion on it but don’t want to share it, so be it. It’s like expecting people who are famous to have to talk about their politics, and if they don’t they’re hiding something bad. It’s no one else’s business. If someone wants to express something, great. If not, goody. My mind does not revolve around what Lin thinks about something that is pretty obviously already bad.