Harvey Weinstein Accused of Sexual Harassment By Ashley Judd & Others, He Issues Statement in Response

Women are coming forward alleging that powerful Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein sexually harassed them. One of those women is Ashley Judd.

In an encounter years ago, Ashley said she was invited to the Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel and met Harvey in a room, where he was wearing only a robe and asked if she wanted to massage him or watch him shower.

“How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?” Ashley told the New York Times. According to the publication, the accusations go back three decades. Over the years, he has reached settlements with an assistant in New York in 1990, an actress in 1997, an assistant in London in 1998, an Italian model in 2015 and a woman named Lauren O’Connor, who said she was left “crying and very distraught” after he had her massage him without his clothes on in a hotel room.

Harvey responded to the allegations, “I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though I’m trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.” Harvey also added he’s continuing to work on himself by seeing therapists to “deal with this issue head on.” He plans to take a leave of absence.

Harvey also released a statement to THR, saying, “I so respect all women and regret what happened. I hope that my actions will speak louder than words and that one day we will all be able to earn their trust and sit down together with Lisa to learn more. Jay Z wrote in 4:44 ‘I’m not the man I thought I was and I better be that man for my children.’ The same is true for me.”

Harvey‘s lawyer, Lisa Bloom, called him “an old dinosaur learning new ways.” She also said she has “explained to him that due to the power difference between a major studio head like him and most others in the industry, whatever his motives, some of his words and behaviors can be perceived as inappropriate, even intimidating.”

“From the outside, it seemed golden – the Oscars, the success, the remarkable cultural impact,” Mark Gill, former president of Miramax Los Angeles, told the NYT. “But behind the scenes, it was a mess, and this was the biggest mess of all.”