The 'Django Unchained' director says of sexual harassment allegations against his longtime collaborator, 'I knew enough to do more than I did... I wish I had taken responsibility for what I heard.'
- Oct 20, 2017
AceShowbiz - Quentin Tarantino is ready to talk about sexual harassment allegations against his longtime friend and collaborator, Harvey Weinstein. After issuing a brief statement through actress Amber Tamblyn, the "Inglourious Basterds" director says in an interview that he knew about Weinstein's misconduct and regrets that he did nothing about it.
"I knew enough to do more than I did," he tells The New York Times about the scandal involving the former movie mogul. "There was more to it than just the normal rumors, the normal gossip. It wasn't secondhand. I knew he did a couple of these things."
He adds, "I wish I had taken responsibility for what I heard. If I had done the work I should have done then, I would have had to not work with him." He admits that he "chalked it up to a '50s-'60s-era image of a boss chasing a secretary around the desk. ... What I did was marginalize the incidents. Anything I say now will sound like a crappy excuse."
One of the incidents that Tarantino had been aware of before the expose by the Times involved Tarantino's former girlfriend Mira Sorvino, who told him about unwelcome advances and unwanted touching by Weinstein. "I was shocked and appalled," he said, adding that at the time he felt like the problem was resolved because he thought "[Weinstein] won't mess with her, he knows that she's my girlfriend."
Years later, another actress told him a similar story. The "Django Unchained" helmer also knew that Rose McGowan had reached a settlement with Weinstein.
"Everyone who was close to Harvey had heard of at least one of those incidents," Tarantino says. "It was impossible they didn't." Tarantino adds that he has reached out to Weinstein, who he believes needs to "face the music," amid the mounting allegations, but got no reply.
The Weinstein Company has produced all of Tarantino's films since 1994's "Pulp Fiction" until recent flicks, including "Inglourious Basterds", "Django Unchained" and "The Hateful Eight". Weinstein also hosted an engagement party for Tarantino and his fiancee Daniella Pick in September.
