Frontline (1983–…): Season 36, Episode 6 - Weinstein - full transcript

♪

Harvey!

(REPORTS SHOUTING)

(CAMERAS CLICKING)

NARRATOR: Tonight on
Frontline…

More than 60 women have come
forward to accuse Weinstein

of sexual harassment,
assault, and rape.

By the mid-'90s, we were aware

of what the was alleged to be doing.

Weinstein has repeatedly
denied allegations

of non-consensual sex.



He believed he was going to
be untouchable.

NARRATOR: The story
of how Harvey Weinstein

silenced his accusers.

Harvey Weinstein had an
incredibly complex machine

designed to maintain silence
around this.

I just remember feeling so
powerless and furious…

Large pay-outs,
nondisclosure agreements…

Absolutely in fear of death,

I was not allowed to talk
to a journalist.

An array of private
investigation firms….

They completely destroyed me
and my image.

He had one of the most
powerful legal teams

in the country.

He got very angry and said
"I've investigated you



and you're not so clean,
so be careful."

NARRATOR: The insiders
speaking out for the first time.

It was the company that was completely

and utterly ruled by Harvey.

And Harvey was a dictator.

NARRATOR: About what
Hollywood knew.

I think looking back that I did know

and I chose to suppress it.

I chose to hide from that fact.

NARRATOR: Tonight, a
Frontline special... "Weinstein."

♪

I was just starting my
career, it was the early '90s.

I was just out of acting school,

going on auditions and pounding
the pavement.

♪

The first time I met him
was in the Miramax office,

and it was a, you know,
a legitimate meeting

set up by my agents.

The first moments of that
meeting were very easy,

breezy, casual.

You know, "Welcome to
the Miramax family."

And I felt very much like he was
going to take care of me.

And then he said, "There's
a screening this afternoon"

of one of our movies, you know,
you should come.

"I'll have my car come pick you up."

♪

Once I got there I realized it
wasn't a special screening

with cast and crew,
it was just a movie.

♪

I wanted to leave, he sort of
said, "Oh I'll take you home."

We ended up stopping at his house.

And then I-I ended up going up

probably against my better judgment.

Once I was in there we had
another hour-long conversation

about movies and film.

And he went into the other room
and he came back with…

with a robe on,

and the robe was just like
an open robe.

I didn't even look to see, you know.

I was just so stunned.

There was no suave moves or anything,

like there was just a really
weird, awkward,

"Will you give me a massage?"

I had to say just "No, and I...
I'm not comfortable."

He left the room and he came back

and he was just fully naked.

I thought, "He's coming after me."

(SIGHS)

Um…

I just remember sort of darting
back and forth

trying to get past him.

You know in that moment
that you may not make it.

I told him that I was furious,
I said, you know,

I said, "I can't believe
you're doing this to me."

I don't know if he heard me,
but he may have,

he might have heard me, I don't know.

(SNIFFLES)

I mean, I do… I was able to
finally get a… a way out.

I knew that if I went up against
Harvey Weinstein,

I mean, just instinctually,
I'd be squashed.

So I was scared.

And so I didn't say anything
to the people

that might have been able to help me.

NARRATOR: Katherine Kendall
is one of over a hundred women

who have come forward with allegations

against Harvey Weinstein
since October 2017.

Many of these women are now suing him.

Weinstein declined to be interviewed,

but through his spokeswoman,
provided "Frontline"

written responses to the
allegations in this film.

He denies any criminal conduct.

Harvey Weinstein was one of
the most powerful people

in Hollywood for decades,

and he was a darling of the
American political world.

Any time you have a story like this

where people are getting hurt
over decades and decades,

there are people around who knew enough

and could have done more to stop it.

I think this is a momentous reckoning.

But, frankly, I think there's so
much more to discover.

Who knew about this?

How much of a cover up was this?

♪

It began in Buffalo,
it all began in Buffalo.

It was a brash, young fellow
from Flushing, Queens,

who arrived here as an
18-year-old freshman

at the University of Buffalo.

I believe he only put in a year
before he was

just kind of mesmerised
by all of the opportunities

that awaited him here.

♪

NARRATOR: Weinstein built up
a successful

concert promotion business.

Then, in 1980, he made his first film.

♪

It was a gory film about a
guy that comes back for revenge

and murders the people at the camp.

(SCREAMING)

NARRATOR: 24-year-old Paula
Wachowiak worked on the film

as an intern.

One day, she says, she was asked
to take some checks

to a hotel room for Weinstein to sign.

He was standing there
and he had a hand towel

around his waist.

I handed him the folder
and he dropped the hand towel,

and all the while he's asking me
questions about checks.

And he, at some point,
sat down on the bed,

and he plopped the folder on his lap,

and then he started saying,
"What about this one,"

and he's pointing.

And I'm not gonna look down, so I say,

"Which one is that, Harvey?"

Then he said, "I have a-a crick
in my shoulder,"

he said, "could you give me a massage",

could you rub it out for me?"

And at that point I looked at
him and I said,

"Harvey, I don't think that's
in my job description."

NARRATOR: Another young woman
working on the film,

Suza Maher-Wilson, says
Weinstein approached her

at a party after filming had finished.

This is the first time she's
spoken publicly about it.

There was a hotel room right
off the lobby.

And that's when he like lured me
in there to give him a massage.

And I agreed, being
a 23-year-old naiïve,

trusting young woman.

He said, "I'm going to the lavatory."

And I said, "Okay."

And then I…

He came out and he was naked
with a towel

and it was a little shocking.

And I just said,
"I'm sorry, this isn't…

this isn't what I signed on for."

And, I-I left the room immediately.

NARRATOR: Weinstein has since
said in a statement,

"I came of age in the '60s and '70s.

That was the culture then."

In his responses to "Frontline,"

he denies Paula Wachowiak's account,

and disagrees on the details of
Suza Maher-Wilson's account.

I told probably a handful of people,

but no one seemed shocked
'cause he was the producer.

We all felt it was typical of
someone in a position of power

to wield that over younger,
younger girls.

I don't think anyone would
have listened to me.

I don't think it would have mattered.

I'm not famous.

I didn't think that my story
meant anything to anybody.

NARRATOR: Weinstein soon left
Buffalo for New York City.

Miramax... the film company he founded

along with his brother Bob...
was expanding.

They saw themselves as artists,

outsiders to the Hollywood system.

At Miramax we're not under
that corporate pressure to say,

"Jesus, we've got to go up each year."

We can do what we think is good
and if our profits are lower

next year than they were
the year before, so what?

So what, as long as we did good work.

♪

NARRATOR: The company made
its name with movies

that mainstream studios ignored.

Weinstein's power was growing,

and he was working with top
Hollywood actresses.

(RADIO CHATTER)

Come on, we got him.

NARRATOR: In 1992, Sean
Young, who was already known

for movies like "Blade Runner,"

starred in his latest film
"Love Crimes."

Who the (BLEEP) are you?

District Attorney, ass (BLEEP).

I play a character who discovers
this sexual predator,

and then tracks them down,
and then the tables are turned

and is entrapped by him.

The wire went out.

I wanted to get him under felony
and I needed it on tape.

I was sitting in Harvey's office
after the picture.

And this is the only time this
has ever happened to me,

he pulled his… thing out
and my response was,

"You know, Harvey, I really
wouldn't be pulling

that thing out because
it's really not pretty."

And I got up and I left.

NARRATOR: In his responses,
Weinstein told "Frontline"

Sean Young's account is untrue,
he never met her in his office

or anywhere else, and had
nothing to do with her career.

It was the last time she would
work on a Miramax film.

The reason I didn't get another movie

with Harvey Weinstein was that
I made him feel foolish.

♪

I was set to have a very big career,

but I upset a few important men,

and the trajectory of
my career went… Whooo…

(IMITATES CRASH)

♪

NARRATOR: In 1993, Miramax
was bought by Disney,

helping Weinstein become one of
the most powerful producers

in Hollywood.

Disney says it was unaware of
any sexual misconduct complaints

against him.

But his colleagues say he was
notoriously difficult

to work for.

Working at Miramax was like
being in a cult.

The cult of Harvey.

It was common knowledge,

everybody knew what
a brutal regime it was.

He worked beyond the limits of
normal human beings.

NARRATOR: Paul Webster joined
Miramax in 1995.

This is his first television
interview about Weinstein.

I knew I was making a deal
with the devil.

I knew he was a bully, I knew he
would stop at nothing

to get what he wanted.

I knew he had a volcanic temper.

I knew he was a dangerous character.

But I knew also that he was at
the epicentre

of where I wanted to be.

NARRATOR: Despite his
reputation as a bully,

Hollywood stars continued
to line up to work with him.

A part in one of his films could
mean artistic credibility,

fame, and awards.

Oh, my love!

I thought you were dead!

NARRATOR: In 1998,
26-year-old Gwyneth Paltrow

appeared in "Shakespeare in Love."

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

♪

It won both her and Weinstein Oscars.

This is a movie about life and art,

and art and life combining
is called magic.

NARRATOR: Weinstein was at
the top

of the Hollywood establishment.

But a reporter with sources
in the movie industry

was investigating a disturbing
rumour about him.

We had heard that Gwyneth
Paltrow had been assaulted.

We heard it from a director
who was very upset about it,

and wanted it to be out there.

And we thought well, "Yeah, you
know, we gotta try and do this."

But there was no path forward
at that point at all.

If you call their publicist and say,

"I wanted to talk to Gwyneth Paltrow

because I heard she was attacked
by Harvey Weinstein,"

you can imagine how
that phone call would go.

It would be short. (LAUGHS)

NARRATOR: Paltrow didn't
address the rumours at the time,

and never accused him of assault.

But she's since said that
Weinstein harassed her,

and that she told her agent, and
her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt,

who confronted Weinstein.

It's a hard choice to make.

She could take him on
or have her career,

and I'm not blaming her for not
wanting to take him on.

We've seen in the aftermath, the
lengths to which he would go

to destroy people who tried to
take him on.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

NARRATOR: Whatever rumours had
been circulating

about Harvey Weinstein,
his power only grew.

Some of the up-and-comers who met him

say they were unaware
of his reputation.

In 1998 I was 24.

Modelling around the world,
I thought I was tough.

NARRATOR: Zoe Brock met
Weinstein

at the Cannes Film Festival.

We were taken into the
Majestic Hotel to have dinner,

and that was where I was sat
next to Harvey.

♪

NARRATOR: As the evening was
drawing to a close,

she says Weinstein offered her a ride.

Then Harvey told us that he'd
spoken to everybody

and they were going to join us
at the du Cap,

where he was staying, which is
30 minutes out of Cannes

and quite remote.

NARRATOR: When they arrived
at his hotel,

she says Weinstein's entourage
disappeared

and her friends were nowhere
to be seen.

My friends were never coming,
that was a blatant lie.

So we get to the hotel room.

And I remember sobering up fast.

And then Harvey walked back in
and he was naked.

So he's negotiating,
he's negotiating a massage.

"I want a massage."

Come on, give me a
massage, give me a massage.

Just, you know, let me give you
a massage.

"Blah blah blah blah blah."

And he's rapid fire, and he
takes control of the situation.

I very unwillingly let him
manoeuvrer me into his bedroom,

and sat… sat on the bed.

I may have even been stupid
enough to lie down

and he started to massage my shoulders.

And within seconds I knew that,

that was just not going to fly,

there was no way this was happening.

And I got up and I bolted into
the bathroom

and he chased me.

But I remember locking the door

and him being on the other side
of it and banging.

I screamed at him,
"Put your (BLEEP) clothes on

you naughty (BLEEP) boy."

And I meant it.

And it worked.

I came out of the bathroom and
he was apologising, and he…

started to cry.

And he said something that I
have never forgotten

and I never will for the rest of
my days,

in between his tears, "You don't
like me because I'm fat."

I really felt sorry for him
in that moment.

At that point I had no idea

obviously how dangerous he really was.

NARRATOR: Weinstein's
responses to "Frontline"

do not directly dispute Zoe
Brock's allegations,

but say she is
"publicising her lawsuit"

seeking damages from Mr. Weinstein,

despite the fact that she never
complained to anyone

"at the time."

But Zoe Brock says
she told many people.

I told my agent.

I told so many people in Hollywood...

producers, casting agents...

everyone's reaction across the
board was always,

"Oh… Yeah, Harvey."

NARRATOR: Her agent denies
that she told him.

♪

But, across Hollywood, many
models and actresses

now say they told their agents
about Weinstein's behaviour.

The agents had to know.

The top agents had to know.

And, frankly, any agent who knew
what was happening

with Harvey Weinstein should be
coming forward now

explaining what happened.

♪

NARRATOR: One of the most
influential talent firms

in Hollywood, Creative Artists Agency,

has since said in a statement,

"We apologise to any person
the agency let down."

By now, some inside Miramax had
started to connect the dots

about Weinstein's behaviour.

My memory is that I was fully aware

that Harvey was a serial womaniser.

There would be times when you'd
be kicked out of the suite

in the Savoy or the Peninsula
Hotel in L.A.,

and he would entertain.

But it didn't take too much
brainpower to put it together

that a man who was so abusive
and bullying in every aspect

of his life would bring that abuse

into the sexual arena.

I think looking back that I did
know and I chose to suppress it.

I chose to hide from that fact.

I think we were all enablers.

I think we were, we were all complicit.

Could I have done anything at the time?

Well, for one, I never thought
about doing anything about it.

I know that I prevented my
assistant being called

to the Savoy Hotel late at night.

I said, "No, you can't go."

So, obviously I was aware of that.

I didn't have the guts
to do anything about it.

I think the deal I'd made with
the devil was to my advantage.

♪

NARRATOR: With no one in
Hollywood calling him out,

Weinstein's alleged behaviour
continued.

Zelda Perkins was one
of his assistants.

The first time that I
travelled alone abroad with him,

he insisted that I went into
the bathroom

while he had a sauna
because he needed to do work,

and I refused to go in the sauna.

And he said, "Well I…
this isn't working",

I'm going to have a bath instead."

So I tried to leave the bathroom,

he said, "You can't leave, I need to…"

we need to get this business done."

He was reeling off names of all
the actresses

that he had had some sort of
sexual relations with

or who had given him massages
or whatever.

And I remember looking round
at him and saying,

"How do you look at yourself
in the mirror?

How do you... how do you do that?"

And I can remember him looking
back at me,

utterly nonplussed and saying,
"I have no problem at all."

♪

NARRATOR: In 1998, Perkins
accompanied Weinstein

to the Venice Film Festival,
along with a new colleague.

She came to me in a very
distressed state

and told me that he had assaulted her,

that he'd attempted to rape her.

I was completely side-swiped by this.

I went straight to Harvey
and confronted him

about what had happened,

and he swore on-on the life
of his wife and children

that absolutely nothing had happened.

NARRATOR: But Perkins didn't
believe him.

She and her colleague quit Miramax

and went to lawyers in London
for advice.

There didn't seem to be any recourse

in terms of bringing Harvey to justice.

We had no physical proof, we
hadn't gone to the police in…

on the Lido in Venice.

Really the only option
that we were given

was to request damages.

♪

NARRATOR: In negotiation with
Weinstein's lawyers,

they asked for around $200,000 each,

and also insisted on measures
that would protect

Miramax employees
from harassment:

therapy sessions for Weinstein,
a new HR policy,

and a clause that could see him
fired if he paid off

any more women.

Weinstein accepted the terms
on condition they sign

a non-disclosure agreement, or N.D.A.

We weren't allowed to talk to anybody

about the alleged behaviour, but
also about our time at Miramax.

This wasn't a normal
confidentiality agreement;

this wasn't us saying that we
weren't gonna, you know,

give away corporate secrets.

This was a deeply personally
binding agreement,

which certainly in my colleague's case,

meant that she couldn't
ever speak about

a huge personal trauma
that happened to her.

♪

NARRATOR: Perkins would
eventually decide

to break her N.D.A.

But her former colleague has
maintained her silence.

In his statement to "Frontline,"

Weinstein denies the attempted
rape allegation,

and says that, "Ms. Perkins
asked for money"

instead of reporting her claims
to the authorities."

So, you take your check and
you try to deal with it

as best you can, you know.

He got away with it for years,
just on the strength of that.

♪

NARRATOR: Weinstein went on
to use N.D.A.s

with multiple women who accused
him of sexual misconduct.

In his response to "Frontline,"
he said,

"Over a period of 30 years,"

there were actually less
than ten settlements

"of harassment claims."

And that "none of these
settlement agreements prevented"

any individual from going to the police

"had they wished to do so."

The use of N.D.A.s on behalf
of Weinstein

to silence women who agreed to
them was an enabling factor.

It allowed him to silence
complaining victims

and just see it as a cost
of doing business.

So he knew that he had nothing to fear

from continuing with the
behaviour that led to the problem

in the first place, and again,
and again, and again.

NARRATOR: Four years later,

a journalist at the "New Yorker"
magazine

heard that Weinstein had been settling

sexual harassment claims.

I had never encountered an N.D.A.,

a non-disclosure agreement,

and you're talking about large
sums of money.

In each case hundred, hundreds
of thousands of dollars.

NARRATOR: He began to
investigate.

Then he got a name... Zelda Perkins.

She had moved to Guatemala,
but he tracked her down.

I picked up the phone and
this gentleman asked me directly

about whether I had an agreement
with Harvey Weinstein.

She was really terrified...
"How'd you find me?"

I think I might have even
said, "Yes, I ha... yes,"

when he said, "Do you have
an agreement with Harvey?"

And then panicked and was like,
"No, no, I haven't…

yes, I have… no, I haven't,
no, I can't talk to you."

I just knew that one thing that
I absolutely in fear of death

I was not allowed to talk
to a journalist.

NARRATOR: Perkins wouldn't
agree to an interview

for Auletta's story, but he
decided to confront Weinstein.

We were sitting in a small
conference room,

across from each other, and I said,

"Harvey, tell me about Zelda Perkins."

He rose, and he clenched his fists,

and he raised his shoulders,
and he said,

"This is a f…" you can
imagine... "an outrage,"

and he started screaming at me.

So I thought he was going
to throw a punch at me.

So I stood up, and that point
Harvey started to cry.

It was extraordinary.

And what he'd said was,
"Ken, you're going to ruin"

my marriage, these were
consensual relationships.

"And if you publish this you're
going to destroy my-my family."

NARRATOR: Auletta couldn't
get anyone to speak

on the record about the N.D.A.s

and allegations of sexual misconduct.

He and his editors concluded
they couldn't publish

what he'd heard.

I wish I could have nailed
the guy in 2002.

The problem I had was
that I couldn't prove it.

Clearly, people knew or
suspected that Harvey was a…

was a predator, sexual predator.

And-and they kept their mouths shut.

(REPORTS SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY)

NARRATOR: As Weinstein fended
off reporters

from the mainstream press,
he was courting the tabloids.

Harvey liked to have a good
relationship with the media,

and I guess 'cause I'm a Brooklyn guy

and he's a Queens guy, he took to me.

And we'd spend some time on the phone,

shooting the breeze about
what went on last night,

where were the parties,
what did you do?

NARRATOR: Gossip writer
AJ Benza heard from a source

that Weinstein was having an affair.

I called him, and he said,
"Not true, not true, not true."

And then he called back and said,

"Okay, there's something to it,
let's try to work this out."

NARRATOR: Although Weinstein
denies it,

Benza says they cut a deal.

He would be paid to supply
celebrity gossip

that Weinstein could trade
with other reporters

who dug up dirt on him.

The gossip industry is run on
the barter system.

If I've got a story about you
and you don't want it printed,

you say, "Hold it, I'll get you
something better,"

and I'll print the other story
and save you.

That's done every day, so
what Harvey and I were doing

was something that was already...
it was always done.

NARRATOR: Despite the rumours
about Weinstein at the time,

Benza insists he never heard any
sexual harassment allegations.

I know it sounds ridiculous,

but in the 20 years I knew
Harvey there was never a story

about him going after somebody
sexually.

Finding out now all these women
are… were in some kind of hell

with him, no clue, not at all.

♪

NARRATOR: But other reporters
in Hollywood were still trying

to pin down the rumours they'd heard.

Kim Masters, who'd been writing
critical stories about Miramax,

got a meeting with Weinstein.

I met him at the Peninsula Hotel,

for the first time face to face.

He comes in very aggressive,
yelling and screaming,

"What have you heard about me?"

And I sort of had this now or
never thing, and I said,

"I've heard you rape women."

He did not seem shocked or outraged.

You would expect a normal person
to say, "I'm sorry, what?"

How dare you"... and there was
none of that at all.

NARRATOR: In his response
to "Frontline,"

Weinstein said that he wasn't shocked

because he'd already heard
the allegation and it was false.

I'd heard really brutal allegations.

We couldn't write about those,

we couldn't get it on the record.

I think he kind of believed,

as he did with reason
for years to come,

that he was going to be untouchable.

(REPORTER SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY)

NARRATOR: Weinstein would
eventually leave Miramax

after a series of disputes with Disney.

He and his brother set up
The Weinstein Company.

Quick picture, please!

NARRATOR: Rumours about his
conduct continued to circulate

throughout Hollywood,
but he kept making hits,

and winning awards.

"The King's Speech."

Iain Canning, Emile Sherman…

Thank you, Harvey Weinstein.

And, of course, Harvey.

Harvey, thank you for killing
whoever you had to kill

to get me up here today. (LAUGHTER)

I think the entire industry
knew that he was obsessed

with young actresses, that he
was a cheater on his wife,

and that he "made the scene"
with many women.

I don't know who actually knew
what was happening.

And the Golden Globe
goes to… Meryl Streep.

It was a time and a place
where to be in his circle

was to be successful.

I just want to thank my
agent, Kevin Huvane,

and God, Harvey Weinstein.

(LAUGHTER)

NARRATOR: Some of Hollywood's
biggest stars...

like Meryl Streep... have since
said they were unaware

of Weinstein's alleged misconduct.

But a handful have admitted they knew,

including director Quentin Tarantino.

He said, "I knew enough to do
more than I did."

And that, "Everyone who was
close to Harvey"

had heard of at least
one of those incidents."

I think there are still a lot
of people out there

who know way more about
what was happening here

than what they've cared to share.

They were, in many ways,
the great enablers

for Harvey's behaviour.

Being in his grace was allowing
them to make their careers

more successful, but there were
so many times

they should've said something,
stopped something, spoken up.

♪

NARRATOR: In 2011, Weinstein
invited actress Jessica Barth

for a business meeting
at the Peninsula Hotel

in Beverly Hills.

He said that there was a role

in Sarah Jessica Parker's new film.

And then it very quickly shifted
to asking me

to give him a naked massage on the bed.

I was like, "You know, I'm married."

And he said... I said,
"You are too, right?"

And he said, "Yes, but we
have… we have an arrangement."

And I was like, "You know what,
Harvey",

about done with this
conversation right now."

So I left, I shut the door,
and I burst into tears.

I told my family, and then
I told Seth McFarlane,

he was a close friend of mine.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

I'm Seth McFarlane,
the host of the Oscars.

Congratulations, you five ladies
no longer have to pretend

to be attracted to Harvey Weinstein.

(LAUGHTER)

And then I was like, good, I'm glad.

I'm glad he just did that.

Because at that point, nobody
was saying anything publicly.

I feel like everybody kind of
knew about Harvey,

but nobody was saying
anything publicly.

Honestly there wasn't
any reaction after that.

I guess they still wanted to
make movies

and collect their awards
and just go on their merry way.

(CHUCKLES)

NARRATOR: By 2015,

allegations of Harvey
Weinstein's sexual misconduct

had been whispered among
industry insiders for decades,

but still hadn't become public.

That was about to change.

♪

It started when
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez,

a 22-year-old Italian model,
went to the New York police.

She had just had a meeting with
Harvey Weinstein.

The story that she told is
that shortly after she came in,

Harvey Weinstein inquired about
whether her breasts were real

or not, he groped her breasts,

he reached up her skirt
and he tried to kiss her.

It degenerates from her coming
up there to discuss her career

to her fighting this guy off
in his office.

NARRATOR: The police wanted
evidence.

They asked her to meet Weinstein again,

and this time wear a wire.

The next night, she met him
at a hotel near his office.

After I left the hotel
I was with the police.

I felt completely positive about
what I'd done.

They were super happy and like saying,

"Wow, now, this person is
completely finished;

you saved a lot of women."

The N.Y.P.D. arranges to
speak with Harvey Weinstein.

He's denying that anything happened.

But they felt that the accuser
was credible

and these charges were worth pursuing.

And that's what they told the…
the Manhattan district attorney.

NARRATOR: With New York
prosecutors now considering

whether to press charges,

Weinstein for the first time
found himself

in a story he couldn't suppress.

Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's facing

sexual assault allegations
this morning.

It's on the front page
of "The Daily News."

It's on the front page of
"The New York Post."

This is already a huge story.

The stunning Italian model
who's accusing Harvey Weinstein

of sexual abuse.

The woman alleges that
Weinstein grabbed her thigh

and chest.

And so within 36 hours
of the news coming out,

this was the big story
in New York City.

When Ambra Gutierrez came
forward with her allegation,

a machine mobilised to shut down
these charges,

and that included Harvey
Weinstein hiring power lawyers.

He had one of the most powerful
P.R. teams in the country.

NARRATOR: Weinstein also
employed the services of K2,

a private intelligence firm
usually specialising

in corporate investigations
and security.

No one from K2 would agree to an
interview,

but a former employee who was
there at the time

says Weinstein's request was unusual.

We agreed to hide his identity

as he still works in the industry.

Harvey Weinstein came to K2
initially with a matter

that they probably wouldn't take
on if it was somebody else.

Nobody likes to develop
information on somebody

who's accusing a client
of sexual misconduct.

But Harvey Weinstein
being Harvey Weinstein,

exceptions were made.

NARRATOR: He says K2 was
tasked with investigating

Gutierrez' past in Italy and
providing the information

to Weinstein.

Stuff started leaking out of
the Weinstein camp

about her past.

She once filed a sexual assault suit

against a 70-year-old "sugar daddy."

There was a report that she
had been sleeping

with a 70-year-old man in return
for gifts from this guy.

It lasted for like a week,

everyday something different
coming out.

Everything was about me being
a blackmailer, a prostitute.

NARRATOR: Prosecutors asked
to meet with Gutierrez.

She had given conflicting accounts

of what happened in Italy.

They were asking me questions
like, "Are this news real?"

Like, "You're a prostitute?"

I was asking them like,
"Did you hear the recording?"

They were like,
"Oh yes, I heard of it,"

but you have to explain this
situation in Italy

"is very confusing."

I was like, "Guys, I mean,
I'm the victim."

NARRATOR: Concerned how her
story would play to a jury,

the district attorney's office
announced

Weinstein would not be prosecuted.

Manhattan District Attorney
Cyrus Vance Jr.

declined to be interviewed.

His office told "Frontline"
they acted professionally,

and that what emerged from the audio

and subsequent investigation
was insufficient

to prove a crime under New York law.

The case rose and fell
entirely on a study

of the reputation of the accuser.

Everybody just focused on Ambra

and nobody focused on the guy
that she accused.

NARRATOR: Like other women
before her,

Gutierrez went on to sign
a non-disclosure agreement.

She received a million dollars...

Weinstein's biggest known settlement.

She says the deal doesn't prevent her

from giving an interview, but
she can't reveal the details

of the alleged assault.

There is 18 pages,
like really, really like,

written in very small letters
and there is a list

of different things I can't do

and, yeah, the first of all is silence.

♪

NARRATOR: Although Weinstein
hadn't been charged,

an allegation of sexual assault
was now in the public domain.

Inside The Weinstein Company,
executives absorbed the news.

It was on the front page of
the "New York Post,"

and those of us that heard
about it and read it

kind of looked at each other.

I don't think anybody
was too surprised.

NARRATOR: Tom Prince, an
executive who left the company

last year, is speaking out
for the first time.

No current executives would
agree to an interview.

Prince says he had become concerned

about Weinstein's use of company funds

to fly women around the world.

Pretty much on every
production I would get

a phone call or an email saying
we have to fly an actress

to the movie set.

And I would always come back and
explain to them

that this is a one- or two-day role,

and you know, we're spending an
awful lot of money

flying somebody from Paris to
Philadelphia

or from New York
to New Zealand to fulfil a role

that could be occupied
by a local resident there.

But this was a mandate from Harvey.

It was the company that was
completely and utterly

ruled by Harvey.

And Harvey was a dictator.

I thought clearly there was
something more

than the actresses' acting abilities

involved with us flying somebody

and spending $20,000 on a role
that would have cost $2,000.

NARRATOR: In his response
to "Frontline,"

Weinstein denied this and said
that he and Prince

repeatedly clashed over budgets
and other production issues.

And despite Prince's suspicions,
he insists he only ever heard

vague rumours about Weinstein's
conduct.

I knew nothing.

I would hear things, but they
were innuendos and they were

second and third hand, I didn't
know and to be perfectly honest

I didn't give it a lot of
thought because

you're too buried in doing what

you're just trying to survive everyday.

NARRATOR:
Bob Weinstein, who heads

the Weinstein company, has
also said that he and the board

had no knowledge of his
brother's alleged misconduct,

even though rumours had been
circulating within the company.

Over the years there were
certain people, and it wasn't

just assistants, it was
executives in the company who

did have glimpses of
predatory behaviour.

There were HR officials who were
told about his behaviour

within his own company.

There were lawyers who were

brought in to strike
settlements, but it's

not 100% clear exactly what
went on behind the scenes

of the Weinstein Company Board in 2015.

But, what's clear is that the
board was aware

of the Italian model's allegation.

NARRATOR: In fact, soon after

Amber Gutierrez's settlement
with Weinstein in 2015,

his contract was up for renewal,
and the board made some changes

aimed at his behaviour.

There was a new code of conduct

that was put into place that
year approved by the board

in which they added more
explicit language on sexual

harassment, they also put in
some terms into the contract

Harvey's contract, as well as
the contract of

other executives, in which there
would be financial

penalties if they violated that
code of conduct,

the company was required to make
any payments

or settlements to victims of
that misconduct.

So there were some measures to
try to address what they thought

might be his misconduct at that time.

♪

NARRATOR: With his new
contract,

Weinstein's position
at the company was secure.

But he was about to come under
more pressure

from an unexpected quarter.

(REPORTERS YELLING INDISTINCTLY)

Over the years, Weinstein had
helped raise millions for amFAR,

the Foundation for AIDS Research.

But the amFAR board
had become concerned.

The problem was not sexual misconduct,

but a dispute over the proceeds
of a charity auction.

There, this is fun.

NARRATOR: The charity hired
lawyer Tom Ajamie

to investigate exactly
what happened to the money.

During the course of our investigation

we had to interview people.

We would say to them,
"Why did it go here,

why did it go there?"

The response we would get would be,

"Well, before we get into that,"

do you know that Harvey
Weinstein rapes women?

"Do you know that Harvey
Weinstein is a sexual predator?"

Now we had no proof of that, but
this is what we were hearing

and it was very disturbing.

NARRATOR: Word about this got
back to Weinstein

and he asked Ajamie to meet him.

He said to me,
"Tom, you're spreading rumours

about me raping women."

And my response was, "Harvey,
I'm not saying that",

the community is saying that
about you."

And at some point he got very
angry and said,

"You better be careful, Tom,
because I've investigated you,

and you're not so clean,
so be careful."

♪

NARRATOR: Weinstein has
repeatedly denied

rape allegations.

When the meeting ended, he ran up to me

and got very close to my face and said,

"Please, please sign a
non-disclosure agreement."

Please don't tell anyone.

"Man to man, don't tell anyone
what you've learned about me."

And I said, "Harvey, I can't do that."

He walked out,
he got into the elevator,

and as the elevator doors were closing,

I was looking at his face
and he was looking at my face,

and I saw a very sad and desperate man

who was now sticking his
fingers in various parts

of the dike and trying
to prevent the water

from leaking out and the entire dam

from falling and crushing down on him.

NARRATOR: Weinstein had been
trying to silence

his accusers for decades.

But he was now under
increasing scrutiny

from multiple news organisations.

There had long been rumours
about Harvey Weinstein.

And this was the moment in time
where the "New York Times" said,

"Let's put some investigative
muscle into this."

And so we spent many, many
weeks and many months

trying to get women who had had
encounters with Weinstein

to tell us their stories.

♪

NARRATOR: In October 2017,

Harvey Weinstein finally lost
control of the story.

Now to the latest on Harvey Weinstein.

"The New York Times" reporting
allegations by numerous women

who say the Hollywood mogul
sexually harassed them.

NARRATOR: It was no longer
Hollywood's open secret.

It was news around the world.

Weinstein is accused of
sexually harassing

female employees and actors…

(REPORTER SPEAKING CHINESE)

(REPORTER SPEAKING SPANISH)

(REPORTER SPEAKING FRENCH)

NARRATOR: "The New York
Times" published

multiple allegations of sexual
harassment going back decades.

Harvey Weinstein seemed
to conduct himself

as if he was invincible.

So we really kind of held our
breath after the story broke

wondering if it was gonna have
an impact.

NARRATOR: Further
allegations...

some of assault and rape... would
follow in the "New Yorker."

In the following weeks,
dozens more women...

some famous, some not...
would come forward.

♪

I had no idea of the breadth
and enormity of the story.

I thought he just preyed on us.

That was the most shocking thing,

realising that he was
a serious predator,

and he had been seriously
abusing people

with total impunity for all this time.

(CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING)

NARRATOR: Soon after the news
broke,

Weinstein was fired from his company

and went into therapy.

I spoke to Harvey.

He doesn't sound sad and dejected,

he sounds a little bit…
a little bit humiliated,

but I think he's gearing up
for the fight.

NARRATOR: In a statement
to "Frontline",

Weinstein's spokeswoman said

while he denies any
non-consensual sexual conduct,

he is deeply apologetic to those
offended by his behaviour.

The spokeswoman said it is wrong
and irresponsible

to conflate claims
of impolitic behaviour

or consensual sexual contact
later regretted

with an untrue claim
of criminal conduct,

and his lawyers will respond in
the appropriate legal forum

with evidence disproving
the claims against him.

I think Harvey's career is over.

But, you know, who knows?

Anything can happen.

NARRATOR: As of now, police
in Los Angeles, New York,

and London are investigating rape

and sexual assault allegations
going back to the 1980s.

♪

The New York Attorney General's
office has fired a civil rights

case against Weinstein and
The Weinstein Company, which

declared bankruptcy and is now
in the process of being sold.

♪

And a group of models and
actresses is pursuing

a class action lawsuit against him.

I don't want to go down in history

as Harvey Weinstein's assault victim,

but I damn well will
if it's going to help

put him in jail, and it's going
to change the system.

I will.

Harvey, are you doing okay?

Yeah, I'm not doing okay. I'm trying.

I gotta get help, guys.

You know what, we all make mistakes.

Second chance, I hope, okay?

It saddens me that everybody woke up

because of Harvey Weinstein.

On the other hand,
thank God we've woken up.

in the Weinstein story.

Any agent who knew what was
happening with Harvey Weinstein

should be coming forward now,
explaining what happened…

And learn more about
non-disclosure agreements.

There is 18 pages, a list of
different things I can't do.

Yeah, the first of all is silence.

Connect to the "Frontline"
community on Facebook,

♪

For more on this
and other "Frontline" programs,

♪

"Frontline's" "Weinstein"
is available on DVD.

"Frontline" is also available
for download on iTunes.

♪