Weinstein hires lawyers ahead of expected bad press

LOS ANGELES • Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein (left) is taking no chances. Facing a challenge over what The New York Times and The New Yorker may reveal about him in upcoming stories, he has reportedly hired a team of lawyers and crisis managers.

Industry talk has it that the stories could focus on sexual allegations and abusive behaviour at work.

Sources told the Hollywood Reporter that a Times team has been contacting current and former employees, going back to the time when he ran Miramax more than two decades ago.

NBC News correspondent Ronan Farrow is said to be working with The New Yorker magazine on a "lengthy" piece.

Weinstein, 65, has produced or executive produced many Oscar-nominated films, including Pulp Fiction (1994), The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Rings (2001) and Gangs Of New York (2002).

His treatment of employees was described as bullying in a 2004 book by Peter Biskind.

In 2012, when Time named Weinstein one of The World's 100 Most Influential People, Johnny Depp wrote: "He can be your most frightening nightmare and your closest friend. He is a producer."

Weinstein remains uncowed. Asked by the Hollywood Reporter what he thought about the situation he was in, he said: "The story sounds so good, I want to buy the movie rights."

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 06, 2017, with the headline Weinstein hires lawyers ahead of expected bad press. Subscribe