Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein has been accused and found guilty of abusing several women in the past years, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, and Cara Delevingne. Aside from high-profile celebrities, Weinstein primarily assaulted women who were starting their careers.
English actress Sophie Dix revealed that in 1990, the producer made an unsolicited s*xual move on her inside a London hotel. The actress claimed that it was the “most damaging thing” that ever happened in her life.
Colin Firth Regrets Not Defending Co-Star From Convicted Abuser Harvey Weinstein
Sophie Dix starred alongside Colin Firth in The Hour of the Pig, also known as The Advocate in the US, and being new in the industry, she was excited and naïve (via The Guardian):
“I went trustingly and naively perhaps. I suppose I just took it at face value. As soon as I was in there, I realised it was a terrible mistake. I got to the hotel room, I remember talk of a massage, and I thought that was pretty gross. I think he showed me his big back, and I found that pretty horrid. Then before I knew it, he started trying to pull my clothes off and pin me down, and I just kept saying, ‘No, no, no.’ But he was really forceful.”
Dix managed to run to the bathroom and locked herself in, opting to make an escape. When she opened the door, she found him “standing there m****rbating.”
The incident left the actress traumatized. She told her parents and friends about it but decided to reveal the whole story 26 years later. Firth was also informed about the assault, but the actor only expressed sympathy. Reading her interviews, the actor felt regret not taking any action (via Independent):
“I am extremely pleased that Sophie is speaking out after so many years. I ran into her at a party sometime after filming ‘Hour of the Pig’ – around 25 years ago. She told me she had had a distressing encounter with Harvey Weinstein.”
Now that many women are coming forward against Harvey Weinstein, the actor felt he could have done something to not let it happen again.
“I don’t think she went into all the horrific detail I’ve read in her interview. But I remember her being profoundly upset by it. To my shame, I merely expressed sympathy. I didn’t act on what she told me.”
Firth also revealed that Dix’s account was the first-ever direct story he heard about Weinstein’s wrongdoings.
Gwyneth Paltrow Revealed Harvey Weinstein Harassed Her in 1996
In fact, Colin Firth’s Shakespeare in Love co-star Gwyneth Paltrow also experienced harassment from the producer. The actress shared that Harvey Weinstein asked her to give him a massage in his hotel suite after she has been cast in 1996’s Emma.
She refused and this angered the entertainment mogul, telling BBC: “He screamed at me for a long time. It was brutal.” Brad Pitt, her then-boyfriend, came to her rescue.
Meanwhile, Weinstein’s lawyer Sallie Hofmeister stated:
“Any allegations of non-consensual s*x are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein. Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances. He will not be available for further comments, as he is taking the time to focus on his family, on getting counseling, and rebuilding his life.”
The disgraced producer, who was convicted last December 2022 on four counts of r*pe, is currently housed at the Mohawk Correctional Facility in Rome, New York.
Sources: The Guardian, Independent, BBC
