Actress Lupita Nyong’o speaks out on encounters with Weinstein

Academy Award-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o on Thursday detailed her past encounters with Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, calling attention to the producer’s “rampant predatory behavior” and urging others to speak out about their experiences.

Nyong’o, who said she ultimately refused to work with the veteran producer, recalled in a New York Times op-ed an unwanted advance from Weinstein at his family home in Connecticut, where he had invited Nyong’o, then a film student, for a screening of a documentary. 

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Weinstein, the actress wrote, invited her mid-viewing into his bedroom where he offered her a massage. Looking to control the situation, Nyong’o offered to give him a massage instead, seeking to “keep a semblance of professionalism in spite of the bizarre circumstance.”

Nyong’o later explained that her encounters with Weinstein shaped her early perceptions of the film industry, of which she said intimacy was a “part and parcel,” though later came to realize Weinstein’s behavior was not the industry norm.

The actress’s recounting of her experiences with the producer comes after a number of women have come forward this month to accuse Weinstein of sexual harassment and rape, allegations stretching back decades.

“He was definitely a bully, but he could be really charming, which was disarming and confusing,” Nyong’o said of Weinstein, reflecting on a dinner she had with him along with her school colleagues and his collaborators after a reading of his Broadway show “Finding Neverland.”

At another dinner with Weinstein after a screening of his company’s film “W.E.” Nyong’o recalled Weinstein saying, “Let’s cut to the chase. I have a private room upstairs where we can have the rest of our meal.” 

“If I wanted to be an actress, then I had to be willing to do this sort of thing,” Nyong’o wrote. “He said he had dated Famous Actress X and Y and look where that had gotten them.” 

After the actress declined his offer, Weinstein ended the dinner and said he was unsure of her prospects of a career, seemingly staking it on her relationship with him, she recalled.

Nyong’o said the last she heard of Weinstein was when he offered her a role in an upcoming film by his company. Weinstein reluctantly accepted her refusal, she said, but said he still wanted to work with her in the future. 

“I share all of this now because I know now what I did not know then. I was part of a growing community of women who were secretly dealing with harassment by Harvey Weinstein,” Nyong’o wrote.

“I speak up to make certain that this is not the kind of misconduct that deserves a second chance,” the actress said, urging readers to not keep silent about abuse. “I speak up to contribute to the end of the conspiracy of silence.”

The Los Angeles Police Department is now investigating rape allegations against Weinstein. On Thursday, detectives interviewed an Italian-born actress and model, the sixth woman to accuse Weinstein of rape.