Harvey Weinstein has told his lawyer to refrain from using specific names in legal documents, after Jennifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep criticised him for naming them in his defence.
The 65-year-old disgraced producer – who has been accused of sexually harassing a number of female employees over a 30 year period – was slammed by both stars after their names appeared in legal documents filed in response to a class action lawsuit, which claimed the pair had defended him in public interviews.
In response to their comments, Weinstein has told his lawyers to avoid using specific names in legal documents, and has apologised to both actresses.
Weinstein’s rep told TMZ: "Mr. Weinstein acknowledges the valuable input both Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence have contributed to this conversation and apologises. Once again, moving forward, Mr. Weinstein has advised his counsel to not include specific names of former associates; and to avoid whenever possible, even if they are in the public record."
Weinstein cited Jennifer and Meryl in a section of his document which argued that the allegations against him were out of character, and claimed "these proposed class definitions are fatally overboard as to be not ascertainable".
His documents stated: "As drafted, they would include all women who ever met with Weinstein, regardless of whether they claimed to have suffered any identifiable harm as a result of that meeting.
"Such women would include, presumably, Jennifer Lawrence, who told Oprah Winfrey she had known Weinstein since she was 20 years old and said ‘He had only ever been nice to me,’ and Meryl Streep, who stated publicly that Weinstein had always been respectful to her in their working relationship."
Both actresses then slammed the producer, with Jennifer branding the use of her name as "out of context" and predatory.
She said in a statement: "Harvey Weinstein and his company are continuing to do what they have always done which is to take things out of context and use them for their own benefit. This is what predators do, and it must stop.
"For the record, while I was not victimised personally by Harvey Weinstein, I stand behind the women who have survived his terrible abuse and I applaud them in using all means necessary to bring him to justice whether through criminal or civil actions. Time’s up."
Meryl, meanwhile, called the documents "pathetic" and "exploitive".
She said: "Harvey Weinstein’s attorneys use of my (true) statement – that he was not sexually transgressive or physically abusive in our business relationship – as evidence that he was not abusive with many other women is pathetic and exploitive.
"The criminal actions he is accused of conducting on the bodies of these women are his responsibility, and if there is any justice left in the system he will pay for them – regardless of how many good movies, made by many good people, Harvey was lucky enough to have acquired or financed."
Harvey Weinstein responds to actress criticism
