Harvey Weinstein's name has returned to the headlines, and this time, it's in the form of a new lawsuit filed by former model Crystal McKinney, the very same woman who made recent headlines with claims of sexual assault against music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs.
McKinney alleges in a civil complaint filed in New York City on May 28 that Weinstein and his co-defendants assaulted her and a female friend in a Manhattan hotel room in 2003. The alleged tryst was set up by a modeling executive who promised a significant career break, court papers say. "Don't is a powerful word, and I was told not to use it." Additionally, it had simply just been sex, and not a mutual feeling of love that would be shared by both parties." Looking back, McKinney is "eternally grateful" that she didn't further the relationship, also experimented with casting both Joyce DeWitt and Suzanne Somers, who he also starred with in "Three's Company," which he's currently getting ready to reboot. Ultimately, both actresses would later make their mark in larger career-defining roles.
That executive had given her some sick advice, she said: "Don't f**k him until he either makes you a movie lead or gets you a movie, he's going to." It left me feeling a bit uncomfortable but curious. After all, this was Harvey Weinstein, a man with the keys to the Hollywood kingdom.
However, nearly 20 years later, McKinney shares what happened behind that hotel room door. The legal action, first filed anonymously earlier this year, comes only weeks after she similarly sued Diddy, claiming she was assaulted at a fashion week event in 2003, and that case is still active.
Weinstein, who is now 72 and is already serving a 23-year prison term in New York after being convicted of earlier rape and sexual assault charges, is not going quietly in response to the new allegations. He responded quickly and denied vehemently through his lawyer.
Harvey Weinstein "unequivocally" denies allegations presented in court by a fitness and massage therapist who came forward with allegations detailing how the disgraced movie mogul allegedly masturbated in front of her in 2017, his lawyer said Monday. The lawyer also noted a chronology of the complaint that closely followed her lawsuit against Diddy and characterized the allegations as "suspect," arguing they could be "opportunistic."
Weinstein's lawyers are ready to fight, calling McKinney's allegations unwarranted and strategically timed to take advantage of the media frenzy surrounding Diddy and his current legal woes.
While Ailey himself is no longer alive to be affected by this new revelation, for many who are observing, this latest turn of fate is a stark reminder of the complex, twisted loom of power, abuse, and silence that have plagued the entertainment industry for decades. Whether McKinney's claims will stand up in court is an open question, but her decision to speak out again represents an ongoing moment of reckoning in a world where silence is no longer the default.
Weinstein, meanwhile, still has more legal trouble on the West Coast. He was sentenced to 16 more years in Los Angeles in 2023 on unrelated assault charges. As this latest case plays out, the question is whether this is the quest for justice delayed or not. Only the courts will decide, but the headlines keep coming for now.
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