Harvey Weinstein has apologised to Jennifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep for using their names in a bid to get a sexual misconduct class action suit dismissed.
Both Oscar winners turned on the disgraced movie mogul this week (beg19Feb18) after he quoted positive remarks they had made about him as part of a motion to dismiss a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of Louisette Geiss, Katherine Kendall, Zoe Brock, Sarah Ann Masse, Melissa Sagemiller, and Nannette Klatt last year (17).
Streep called the actions of Weinstein's legal team "pathetic and exploitive", while The Hunger Games star raged, "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."
The movie boss has now responded to the backlash in a statement released to the media by a representative.
"Mr. Weinstein acknowledges the valuable input both Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence have contributed to this conversation and apologizes," it reads. "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.
"Mr. Weinstein has been informed that his civil counsel responded in court to a class action lawsuit which improperly sought to include all actresses who had previously worked with Mr. Weinstein, even where those actresses have made no claim of wrongdoing.
"Even though Mr. Weinstein has worked with hundreds of actresses and actors who had only professional and mutually respectful experiences with him, Mr. Weinstein has directed in the future that no specific names be used by his counsel, even where those actors have made previous public statements about him."
The producer has become an exile from Hollywood ever since details of his alleged sexual misconduct was exposed in The New York Times and New Yorker articles in October (17).
The class action suit Weinstein is fighting alleges he assaulted, abused and harassed women while board members at his production companies Miramax and The Weinstein Company covered up for him.
Weinstein is currently under investigation by police officials in Los Angeles, New York, and London.
