After revelations about Harvey Weinstein’s apparently rampant sexual assaults, it was assumed by many that Hollywood would be cleaning up its act regarding the abuse and exploitation of women.
According to the legendary actress Susan Sarandon, however, that reckoning has not come yet.
Sarandon: Hollywood Hasn’t Changed
Sarandon, 77, doesn’t think her industry has really addressed how young women are treated as they try to succeed in acting.
The Huffington Post reports, “The Oscar winner joined fellow actors Mira Sorvino and Geena Davis for a panel event Sunday in Hartford, Connecticut, where she spoke candidly about disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein, according to reporting this week by People.”
“In 2020, Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison for committing a criminal sex act against a production assistant and for raping an aspiring actor in a hotel. In 2023, he was sentenced to an additional 16 years for the rape and sexual assault of an actor and model in a hotel,” HuffPo noted.
The story continued:
The often outspoken Sarandon said on Sunday that in the wake of the Weinstein scandal, those who’ve enabled abusers continue to work in show business.
“I don’t think we’ve done the cleanup afterwards that we should be doing,” she said. “I don’t think people talk enough about the people who facilitated the Harvey Weinsteins of the world that are still functioning that are equally responsible.”
Sarandon added that these industry insiders remain employed even though they “knew when they were sending people to a hotel” or “didn’t pay attention when someone complained.”
Sarandon also noted that “it’s very confusing to be, you know, a young girl” in Hollywood and realize that executives are “checking on your viability according to how sexy you are.”
“You know that right? You do know that there’s something going on,” she said. “They call it a chemistry thing or whatever they want to call it. But that is part of what you’re bringing to the table.”
“They call it a chemistry thing or whatever they want to call it,” Sarandon concluded. “But that is part of what you’re bringing to the table. Whether you like that or not, that exists.”
Sorvino: ‘I See My Worth as Being a Good Person’
The Oscar-winning star Mira Sorvino said at the event that she “stopped doing [major] studio movies” after Weinstein “stifled” her career. She began to cry and said that she had “rejected him the third time” in 1998.
Sorvino has since moved on from Hollywood, gotten married and is now a mother.
“My family is my everything and I don’t see my worth as being a famous actress,” she said. “I see my worth as being a good person.”
Weinstein’s Fate
CNN reported that last year, Weinstein, now 72, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in Los Angeles for charges of rape and sexual assault. He was already serving a 23 year prison sentence in New York on similar charges.
Hollywood has been patting itself on the back for years for distancing itself from Weinstein, but according to Sarandon, not much has changed. In the end, this all just serves as another example of how hypocritical and self-serving the crazy world of Hollywood really is.
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