Zürcher Nachrichten - Harvey Weinstein says prison is 'hell'

The man who once effectively ruled Hollywood before a spectacular fall from grace at the start of the #MeToo movement said he is trapped in his cell at New York's Rikers Island, with only guards for company.

"It's too dangerous for me to be around anyone else. Other inmates get to go to the yard. But every time I'm out there, I feel like I'm under siege," Weinstein told The Hollywood Reporter in an extraordinary interview published Tuesday.

"One time while I was waiting to use the phone, I asked the guy in front of me if he was done. He got off and punched me hard in the face.

"I fell on the floor, bleeding everywhere. I was hurt really badly."

The Oscar-winning producer, who shepherded films including "Shakespeare in Love" and "Pulp Fiction" to the screen, was the ultimate power player in Hollywood for decades, credited with making careers -- and blamed for breaking just as many.

Weinstein was known for his fiery temper, and the industry had long been rife with suggestions that he took advantage of his power to sexually exploit women.

In 2017, blockbuster investigations by the New Yorker and the New York Times laid bare a series of claims by young women that triggered an avalanche of allegations from more than 80 complainants and prompted the global #MeToo movement.

- 'I don't want to die in here' -

Weinstein's original 2020 conviction in New York, and the resulting 23-year prison term, were thrown out, but in a June retrial he was convicted of two counts of sexual assault.

A California court separately convicted him of rape and in 2023 sentenced him to 16 years in prison, a term the judge ordered to run after his New York sentence.

In the interview published Tuesday, Weinstein repeatedly insisted he had never sexually assaulted anyone.

"I will be proven innocent. That I promise you," he said of an upcoming retrial on a rape charge.

"The thing I was doing wrong was not sexual assault. It was cheating on my wife. I was desperate to keep that secret from her.

"I had lots of people come see me (in a hotel room). But there were some women who knew exactly what was expected. Maybe they felt bad later or they regretted it."

The 73-year-old said some of his accusers were simply chasing the money.

"Maybe they saw an opportunity for a payout. But not all of them were as naive as they liked to pretend.

"Yes, there was a power imbalance. I know I can be scary and difficult. But that's still a long way from sexual assault."

Weinstein, who uses a wheelchair, says he has undergone a heart operation while in prison and now has bone cancer.

He told The Hollywood Reporter that he is terrified of dying in prison.

"It scares the shit out of me," he said.

"It's incredible to have the life that I had and the things that I did for society and not have the leniency to deal with me in a kinder way.

"Whatever they think I did bad in my life, I didn't get the death penalty. I'm going to be 74 in March. I don't want to die in here."

T.Furrer--NZN