Highlights

• Many in Hollywood knew about Harvey Weinstein's misconduct but stayed silent, contributing to his ability to get away with it for years.
• Matt Damon, Quentin Tarantino, and others who worked with Weinstein admit they were aware of his behavior, despite not taking action.
• Weinstein's conviction and downfall marked a turning point in Hollywood's reckoning with misconduct, pushing for proactive change in the industry.

The Harvey Weinstein case came as a shock to movie fans around the globe, as it was revealed that this major figure was committing heinous crimes and corrupting the industry. Many assumed that no one knew, but in truth, many people knew about what was happening, and no one said anything.

Sadly, Weinstein was able to get away with his behavior for years, but once the floodgates were opened, it was open season on him.

Victims were finally getting to share their stories, but at the same time, people who knew about his actions were finally admitting that they weren't in the dark.

Matt Damon Knew Harvey Weinstein Harassed Gwyneth Paltrow

During a 2017 interview, Matt Damon, who was joined by Julianne Moore, talked about Harvey Weinstein's behavior, and the fact that he knew of Weinstein harassing Gwyneth Paltrow.

"But Ben had told me about it. At that point, Harvey was, like, incredibly respectful of her, always,” Damon said

According to the Entertainment Weekly article, this occurred while on set of The Talented Mr. Ripley.

From there, Damon was asked about whether he wished he would have called Weinstein out all those years ago.

“I don’t know what I would have done. I heard from Ben who heard from Gwyneth that this happened. I don’t know how that would have happened. I never saw anything in front of me. I mean, look, he was a bully. He was intimidating. That was part of who he was. I’ve been reading these stories, because I am racking my brain, did I see something, did I know something, is there something I could have done?" Damon said.

As the Entertainment Weekly article noted, Damon had opened up about Weinstein and his allegations in an interview with Good Morning America,

"I knew that story, but I was working with Gwyneth, with Harvey, on [The Talented Mr. Ripley] … I never talked to Gwyneth about it. Ben told me, but I knew that they had come to whatever agreement or understanding they had come to. She had handled it. She was the First Lady of Miramax, and he treated her incredibly respectfully. Always," Damon said in that interview.

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck both knew of Weinstein's awful behavior, but others who worked with the disgraced movie man claim that they didn't know.

Quentin Tarantino Also Knew Of Weinstein's Behavior

In a 2022 interview, Quentin Tarantino, who worked with Harvey Weinstein, admitted to knowing some of what took place.

"I’d never heard the stories that later came out at all. I heard the same stories that everybody had heard. What I wish I had done was talk to Harvey about it and say, ‘Harvey, you can’t do this.’ To tell you the truth, I chalked it up to a ‘Mad Men’-era version of the boss chasing the secretary around the desk," Tarantino said, per Deadline.

Filmmaker, Kevin Smith, who also worked closely with Weinstein, didn't shy away from his thoughts on the fallout of the allegations.

"I'm not looking for sympathy. I know it's not my fault, but I didn't help. Because I sat out there talking about this man like he was a hero, like he was my friend, like he was my father and sh*t like that, and he changed my life. And I showed other people, like, ‘You can dream, and you can make stuff, and this man will put it out,'" Smith said on his podcast.

All these men, from Damon to Smith, worked with Weinstein, who is now behind bars for good.

Harvey Weinstein Was Put Behind Bars For His Crimes

"After a month-long trial and nine days of deliberations, Los Angeles jurors on Monday found Harvey Weinstein guilty of the rape and sexual assault of just one of the four accusers he was charged with abusing," the Associate Press reported back in 2022.

"He was found guilty of rape, forced oral copulation and another sexual misconduct count involving the woman who said he appeared uninvited at her hotel room door during a Los Angeles film festival in 2013," the article added.

Weinstein's case was a landmark event for cleaning up the entertainment industry, and in recent years, we've seen major names take serious blows.

Nickelodeon's Dan Schneider recently came under fire for what was revealed in Quiet on Set.

Now that the door has been opened, let's hope that stars don't wait years to admit that they knew of terrible things going on behind the scenes. Being proactive is the only way to change Hollywood.