Gwyneth Paltrow’s complicated history with Harvey Weinstein is back in the spotlight after the disgraced producer addressed the actor directly during his first major interview from prison, criticizing her for speaking publicly about their past interactions.
Weinstein, who is incarcerated at Rikers Island while facing ongoing legal proceedings tied to sexual assault convictions, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter from behind bars and claimed that Paltrow exaggerated an encounter from the early years of her career and said he still harbors resentment over her role in exposing his behavior.
During the interview, Weinstein discussed the 1990s incident in which Paltrow said he summoned her to his hotel suite shortly after casting her in the 1996 film Emma.
Paltrow later said the meeting turned uncomfortable when Weinstein suggested massages and attempted to initiate physical contact. She refused his advances and described the aftermath as hostile, saying the producer reacted aggressively after she rejected him.
Weinstein disputed her characterization of the encounter in the interview, claiming the interaction ended once she declined. “I walked out of a nice meeting with her and said, ‘How about a massage?’ And she just went, ‘No, I don’t think so.’ I got the message. I never put my hands on her,” he said.
Paltrow said she later told her then-boyfriend, actor Brad Pitt, who confronted Weinstein at a film premiere. Weinstein confirmed that moment during the interview, recalling Pitt telling him, “Don’t do anything like that with my girl.” According to Weinstein, he responded, “Don’t worry, Brad. I got it.”
Despite the incident, Paltrow continued working with Weinstein’s Miramax studio, appearing in films including Shakespeare in Love, which earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1999.
At the time, Weinstein was widely known as one of the most powerful figures in Hollywood and played a major role in launching or shaping the careers of numerous actors.
Years later, Paltrow became one of the prominent sources who spoke to reporters during the 2017 investigations by The New York Times and The New Yorker that exposed allegations from dozens of women. Her participation helped bring further attention to Weinstein’s conduct and encouraged others to come forward.
Weinstein said Paltrow’s decision to speak publicly about him remains one of the most painful betrayals he experienced during the scandal. “Because she was a good friend of mine,” Weinstein said. “I don’t know what drove her to do what she did.”
Weinstein has been imprisoned for much of the past six years while fighting multiple convictions tied to sexual misconduct allegations.