Harvey Weinstein

Harvey Weinstein: Court agrees $17m payout for accusers

Weinstein, 68, was convicted last year and jailed for 23 years for rape and sexual assault.

The payout for his victims will come from the liquidation of the Weinstein Co, which filed for bankruptcy in 2018.

The judge overruled an objection from some accusers looking to pursue appeals outside of bankruptcy court.

Judge Mary Walrath said without the settlement, the plaintiffs would get "minimal, if any, recovery."

The Weinstein Co was set up as an independent film studio with the disgraced Hollywood mogul one of its co-founders.

Harvey Weinstein jailed for 23 years in rape trial

He was found guilty in a trial in New York last month, a dramatic fall from grace for one of Hollywood's most powerful figures.

The 67-year-old appeared in court on Wednesday in a wheelchair.

His lawyers had appealed for leniency, saying even the minimum sentence of five years could be a "life sentence".

But prosecutors argued Weinstein should be given the maximum possible sentence given his "lifetime of abuse" towards women and "lack of remorse" for his actions.

Harvey Weinstein guilty of sexual assaults

Weinstein, 67, was convicted in New York City of third-degree rape and first-degree criminal sexual act.

But he was cleared of the most serious count of predatory sexual assault. He faces up to 25 years in prison.

He still faces charges in Los Angeles of assaulting two women in 2013.

At least 80 women had accused him of sexual misconduct stretching back decades, including actresses Gwyneth Paltrow, Uma Thurman and Salma Hayek.

Ashley Judd using Peter Jackson, LOTR as evidence in Harvey Weinstein lawsuit

Judd has accused Weinstein of sexual harassment and defamation, citing his "baseless smears" about her to Sir Peter as the reason she missed out on a role in the Oscar-winning trilogy.

The Divergent actress was one of the first women to come forward as part of the #MeToo movement, publicly detailing a "breakfast meeting" with Weinstein, in which he asked Judd to watch him shower and to let him massage her. 

Weinstein 'derailed my career' Sorvino says after Peter Jackson claim

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson said both Sorvino and Ashley Judd were "blacklisted" following conversations with Weinstein's company.

Both actresses have claimed the media mogul sexually harassed them.

Weinstein has denied allegations of misconduct, and of blacklisting the actresses.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy was initially in development with Weinstein's Miramax company, before being passed to New Line Cinema.

In an interview with Stuff.co.nz this week, Jackson said he was interested in casting both women in the blockbuster franchise.

Salma Hayek says Harvey Weinstein threatened to kill her

Writing in the New York Times, Hayek said Weinstein once told her: "I will kill you, don't think I can't."

Dozens of actresses - including Rose McGowan, Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow - have accused Mr Weinstein of harassment or assault.

He denies all allegations of non-consensual sex.

In her article, Hayek, 51, a Mexican-American, describes working with him on what she called her "greatest ambition" - telling the story of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo.

Actress Heather Kerr says Harvey Weinstein made her touch his genitals

Heather Kerr, 56, said Weinstein told her that was "how Hollywood works" when she met him alone at an office to discuss how he could help her acting career

"I arrived and a person who appeared to be a secretary was leaving. She gave me a look like, 'I hope you're ready for this'... It was unsettling," Kerr said.

Weinstein sat close to her on a couch, she said, and kept asking her if she was "good". She offered to provide him with a reel of her acting work.

Oscars board expels Weinstein

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said its board "voted well in excess of the required two-thirds majority" to expel him.

Its members include Hollywood figures such as Tom Hanks and Whoopi Goldberg.

Weinstein's films have received more than 300 Oscar nominations and won 81.

The emergency board meeting followed an avalanche of accusations against the producer by more than two dozen women, including actresses Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Rose McGowan, who alleges that he raped her in a hotel room.

Harvey Weinstein: US actress Rose McGowan makes rape allegation

In a series of tweets, McGowan also accused Amazon Studio chief Roy Price of having ignored her when she made the allegation earlier.

Amazon has put Price - himself accused on Thursday of sexually harassing a female producer - on leave of absence.

Weinstein denies any sexual assaults. There was no comment from Price.

Police forces in the US and UK police have launched investigations into sexual assault allegations against Weinstein:

Harvey Weinstein: The accusers' stories

Together, the claims build up a picture of one of the most powerful men in the industry exerting pressure on younger women at the start of their careers, often in hotel rooms and offices.

The suggestions - spoken or unspoken - were that he could advance their careers if they went along with him. Or he could do serious damage to their dreams if they did not.

He has admitted his behaviour has "caused a lot of pain" but has described many of the allegations against him as "patently false".