The actresses say they both had bad experiences with the producer when they were young.
Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie have spoken out about being sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein, adding to the growing list of actresses speaking out about the producer’s alleged abuses.
Paltrow was just 22 years old and had just been cast in the Jane Austen film “Emma” when Weinstein came on to her, she told The New York Times.
Before filming began, Weinstein invited Paltrow back to his suite at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills, where he placed his hands on her and suggested they go into the bedroom for massages, she said.
“I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified,” Paltrow told the Times.
Paltrow said she refused Weinstein’s advances and told her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt about the encounter.
Pitt confronted Weinstein, who in turn reportedly told off Paltrow for discussing what happened.
“I thought he was going to fire me,” she told the paper.
Paltrow went on to win an Oscar for the Weinstein-produced "Shakespeare in Love" in 1999.
Jolie also said she had a negative run-in with Weinstein when she was an up-and-coming actress.
Weinstein allegedly made unwanted advances toward her in a hotel room during the release of “Playing by Heart” in 1998.
“I had a bad experience with Harvey Weinstein in my youth, and as a result, chose never to work with him again and warn others when they did,” she told the Times. “This behavior towards women in any field, any country is unacceptable.”
On Tuesday, The New Yorker published a report that included accounts from numerous women alleging Weinstein sexually assaulted them, including instances of forced oral and vaginal sex.
A spokesman for Weinstein said: "Any allegations of non-consensual sex 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."
As more women came forward, designer Donna Karan came under fire for her comments in the wake of the sexual harassment scandal.
Read: TV Reporter Lauren Sivan Comes Forward to Detail 'Disgusting' Encounter With Harvey Weinstein
“I think we have to look at ourselves,” she told the Daily Mail. “Obviously, the treatment of women all over the world is something that has always had to be identified. Certainly in the country of Haiti where I work, in Africa, in the developing world, it's been a hard time for women. To see it here in our own country is very difficult, but I also think how do we display ourselves? How do we present ourselves as women? What are we asking? Are we asking for it by presenting all the sensuality and all the sexuality?
“And what are we throwing out to our children today about how to dance and how to perform and what to wear? How much should they show?”
She also noted Weinstein’s achievements and said she knew his wife Georgina Chapman.
She was quickly taken to task for her comments.
“Donna Karan you are a DEPLORABLE Aiding and abetting is a moral crime,” tweeted actress Rose McGowan, who was paid a $100,000 settlement from Weinstein in 1997 following a hotel room incident. “You are scum in a fancy dress.”
Karan has apologized for her comments, saying: “I made a statement that unfortunately is not representative of how I feel or what I believe."
More celebrities have come out against the movie mogul.
“I was deeply disturbed to hear the news about Harvey Weinstein’s behavior,” Jennifer Lawrence said in a statement. “I worked with Harvey five years ago and I did not experience any form of harassment personally, nor did I know about any of these allegations. This kind of abuse is inexcusable and absolutely upsetting. My heart goes out to all of the women affected by these gross actions. And I want to thank them for their bravery to come forward.”
Read: Ashley Judd Among Women Accusing Producer Harvey Weinstein of Sexual Harassment
George Clooney has also spoken out, telling the Daily Beast that he had “rumors” about Weinstein since the 1990s, but only that “certain actresses had slept with Harvey to get a role.”
“It seemed like a way to smear the actresses and demean them by saying that they didn’t get their jobs based on their talent, so I took those rumors with a grain of salt,” Clooney said. “But the other part of this, the part we’re hearing now about eight women being paid off, I didn’t hear anything about that and I don’t know anyone that did. That’s a whole other level and there’s no way you can reconcile that. There’s nothing to say except that it’s indefensible.”
Glenn Close acknowledged that “for many years, I have been aware of the vague rumors that Harvey Weinstein had a pattern of behaving inappropriately around women.”
“Harvey has always been decent to me, but now that these rumors are being substantiated, I feel angry and darkly sad,” Close said.
Calling the allegations “deeply shocking,” Kate Winslet said: “I had hoped that these kind of stories were just made up rumours, maybe we have all been naïve”
Ben Affleck, who won an Academy Award for the Weinstein-produced “Good Will Huntin,” also broke his silence.
“I am saddened and angry that a man who I worked with used his position of power to intimidate, sexually harass and manipulate many women over decades,” he said. “The additional allegations of assault that I read this morning made me sick.”
Hillary Clinton, whose presidential campaign received donations from Weinstein, released a statement saying she was “shocked and appalled” by the allegations.
“The behavior described by women coming forward cannot be tolerated,” she said. “Their courage and the support of others is critical in helping to stop this kind of behavior.”
Watch: Harvey Weinstein Says Wife Stands Behind Him Over Sexual Harassment Allegations
