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CAA claimed that they couldn’t inform Julia Ormond of Harvey Weinstein’s abusive behaviour as she already knew about it.
CAA mentions that Julia Ormond was aware of Harvey Weinstein’s past. (Photo Credit: X)
Actress Julia Ormond initiated legal action in 2023. It targeted the ‘enablers’ who permitted film producer Harvey Weinstein to escape accountability for his sexual abuse. The actress, who rose to prominence with her appearance in Legends of the Fall and Smilla’s Sense of Snow, filed a lawsuit and alleged that the co-founder of Miramax Films assaulted her after a business meeting in 1995. Recently, the lawsuit got a new dimension when CAA made certain accusations against the actress.
Besides Harvey Weinstein, Julia Ormond also sued Miramax, Disney, and notably CAA (Creative Artists Agency), claiming that her former agents failed to inform or warn her about the producer’s abusive past. However, in a court filing on Monday, CAA made certain new clarifications that contradicted her charges, as per a report by Variety.
CAA accused Ormond of being well acquainted with Weinstein’s abusive behaviour right before they set up a meeting between the two parties. Cementing their statement, CAA mentioned that this was because the producer had sexually harassed the actress before she became a client of the leading global entertainment and sports agency.
In response to CAA’s statements, the next day, Ormond’s attorney, Meredith Firetog accused the agency of ‘victim-blaming’, mentioning that the actress had a “professional” relationship with the producer before the sexual harassment. “We are pleased with the resolution reached with Disney and Miramax and applaud Ms. Ormond’s strength and perseverance in bringing the case to this point,” Firetog said as per the same report.
The attorney added, “CAA’s spiteful and meritless effort to derail that settlement — so it can deflect blame onto Disney and Miramax for its failure to protect Ms. Ormond — will not succeed. Nor will CAA’s attempts to victim-blame Ms. Ormond because she had a professional relationship with Weinstein before he sexually assaulted her.”
A CAA spokesperson, however, contradicted Firetog’s statements, pointing towards the new evidence. It included the actress’ deposition testimony and writings, which she made about the assault in 2017. “Ms Ormond has admitted that before she became a CAA client, she had a preexisting business relationship with Harvey Weinstein and had been subject to a pattern of his sexual harassment and misconduct,” the spokesperson said, adding, “She has also failed to develop any record showing that CAA had the requisite knowledge of Weinstein’s history of sexual assault at any time to sustain her claims against CAA. The compelling evidence CAA has obtained so far demonstrates the importance of CAA maintaining its right to pursue discovery from Disney and Miramax.”
According to Ormond’s deposition testimony, CAA claimed that Weinstein allegedly assaulted her in his London hotel suite in 1994. They even mentioned that before her first meeting with him that year, her U.K. agent, Patricia Marmont, warned her about his past. “Marmont warned her that Weinstein may hit on her and that, if he did, Plaintiff should be careful about how she dealt with it because he was a powerful man,” said CAA’s lawyers, referencing Ormond’s testimony.
FYI: Ormond entered into a production agreement with Miramax, which Weinstein co-owned, in 1995.
Anindita Mukherjee works as a Senior Sub-Editor in the Entertainment team at News18 Showsha. She introduces herself as someone who is truly, deeply and passionately in love with SRK, films, shows and glitz – ba…Read More
Anindita Mukherjee works as a Senior Sub-Editor in the Entertainment team at News18 Showsha. She introduces herself as someone who is truly, deeply and passionately in love with SRK, films, shows and glitz – ba… Read More
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