Cara Delevingne: Harvey Weinstein asked me to kiss a woman while he watched
Delevingne also claims Weinstein told her to remain closeted if she wanted to work in Hollywood
Cara Delevingne has opened up about her own experience with disgraced movie executive Harvey Weinstein, alleging that he once asked her to kiss another woman while he watched.
In a lengthy Instagram post, the model and actress — who is openly bisexual — said that Weinstein also told her to remain closeted if she wanted to work in the industry.
“When I first started to work as an actress, I was working on a film,” she wrote, “and I received a call from Harvey Weinstein asking if I had slept with any of the women I was seen out with in the media.”
Delevingne claims Weinstein then said, “If I was gay or decided to be with a woman especially in public that I’d never get the role of a straight woman or make it as an actress in Hollywood.”
The incident where she was asked to kiss another woman apparently occurred a year later. Delevingne said she ended up alone with Weinstein after a meeting with him and a director about a part in an upcoming film.
Weinstein proceeded to discuss “inappropriate things of a sexual nature,” she claims, before inviting her to his hotel room. Delevingne said she declined, but ultimately entered his room. “At that moment I felt very powerless and scared but didn’t want to act that way hoping that I was wrong about the situation,” she said.
Once in the room, Weinstein asked her to kiss another woman present there. The other woman attempted to distract Weinstein, but when Delevingne tried to leave, she claims he “walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips. I stopped him and managed to get out of the room.”
Delevingne said she ultimately got the part in the film, but “felt like I didn’t deserve [it].”
As for why she didn’t speak out previously, she said, “I didn’t want to hurt his family. I felt guilty as if I did something wrong.
“I was also terrified that this sort of thing had happened to so many women I know but no one had said anything because of fear.”
The fallout continues in Hollywood after the allegations of sexual assault against Weinstein were first revealed.
Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Mira Sorvino, Rose McGowan and others have all accused the co-founder of The Weinstein Company of varying degrees of assault and unwanted advances, from asking Paltrow to massage him to one anonymous actor who claims Weinstein raped her.
Weinstein’s spokesperson told the Guardian: “Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr Weinstein. Mr Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances.”
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