Harvey Weinstein is suing his brother and other executives at their former film company, The Weinstein Company.
The disgraced producer filed a lawsuit on Thursday, alleging his sibling Bob Weinstein, and others from the business duped him into guaranteeing a $45m loan in 2016, but diverted funds for their own personal use.
The 72-year-old, who was once one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, is currently in jail at New York City’s Rikers Island jail complex, while awaiting a retrial on sex crimes charges in the city.
Weinstein’s claims come as part of a long-running civil case involving a lender accusing him of defaulting on the loan.
His lawyer, Imran Ansari, said in a statement: “Harvey Weinstein was deceived by those closest to him and secured a $45m (£35.8m) dollar loan under the pretence of saving The Weinstein Company”.
He went on: “While Harvey personally guaranteed the loan, others within The Weinstein Company enriched themselves and strategically undermined him, leaving him ‘holding the bag’ of debt while ‘lining their pockets’ when the company was in crisis.”
Ansari alleges Bob Weinstein, 70, and others at The Weinstein Company were in on a plot to position Harvey Weinstein for a downfall in an attempt to seize control of the company, which went bankrupt in 2018 as the sexual misconduct scandal surrounding Harvey Weinstein exploded.
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In 2017, Weinstein became the most high-profile villain of the #MeToo Movement, after numerous women came forward accusing him of sexual assault. He has always maintained any sexual activity he was involved in was consensual.
A lawyer for Bob Weinstein, Brian Kohn, said on Friday that “Harvey’s allegations are entirely without merit”.
Former Weinstein Company chief operating officer David Glasser, now chief executive of 101 Studios, known for its production of hit Paramount series Yellowstone, is also named in Harvey Weinstein’s lawsuit. He is yet to respond to requests for comment.
AI International Holdings loaned the money to two affiliates of The Weinstein Company and Harvey Weinstein, and later sued when it said they defaulted.
Weinstein alleges that his brother, Glasser and others duped him into guaranteeing the loan by saying the money would help the financially struggling company. Instead, his lawsuit says, they diverted millions of dollars from the company for improper purposes, leaving it short on cash and him liable for repaying the loan.
“As a direct result of these actions, the companies were drained of, at the very least, $12m (£9.5m) in cash that should have been allocated to repay the loan owed to AI International,” the lawsuit says.
“This mismanagement left the companies unable to satisfy their financial obligations, resulting in insolvency and placing Weinstein at substantial personal financial risk as the guarantor of the loan.”
The lawsuit, filed in the state Supreme Court in Manhattan, says Weinstein was made to suffer “severe and outrageous financial and reputational harm”.
It also makes several allegations of financial misconduct against Bob Weinstein, Glasser and others.
AI International Holdings sued Harvey Weinstein and the two affiliates of The Weinstein Company in late 2017. The lawsuit said they defaulted on the loan after AI International had ordered the entire balance to be paid immediately because Harvey Weinstein had been dismissed as co-chairman amid the sexual misconduct allegations.
According to Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein and Glasser settled their liability for the loan with AI International for about $15m (£12m) due to “bad faith negotiations,” leaving Harvey Weinstein responsible for the remaining $30m (£24m) plus interest.
Harvey Weinstein’s lawsuit is seeking to shield him from any financial liability for the loan, as well as punitive damages for alleged fraud and financial misconduct and his legal fees.
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Bob Weinstein recently asked the judge to reject subpoenas for documents and a deposition issued by Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer.
Harvey Weinstein was also co-founder of film and television production company Miramax, which produced films including the Oscar-winning Shakespeare In Love, Pulp Fiction, and The Crying Game.
His successful career came to a swift end after charges were brought against him following multiple allegations in 2017.
He is currently being retried on charges that he forcibly performed a sex act on a movie and TV production assistant in 2006 and raped an aspiring actor in 2013. Another charge filed in September alleges he carried out a sex act on a different woman at a Manhattan hotel in 2006.
Weinstein – who has chronic myeloid leukaemia, diabetes and heart problems – has urged the judge to hear his retrial as soon as possible, insisting: “I don’t know how much longer I can hold on.”
Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 conviction and 23-year prison sentence were overturned last year, when an appeals court found the trial judge unfairly allowed testimony against him based on allegations that weren’t part of the case.
