Peter Jackson: I blacklisted Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino under pressure from Weinstein

Could someone PLEASE discuss my blacklisting?!!! I'm tired of being the only one who brings it up.

Mira "burst out crying" when she read about it:

“I recall Miramax telling us they were a nightmare to work with and we should avoid them at all costs,” Jackson said, referencing the production company Weinstein ran with his brother Bob. As a direct result, he said, both women fell out of the running for parts in his Lord of the Rings series.

“At the time, we had no reason to question what these guys were telling us. But in hindsight, I realize that this was very likely the Miramax smear campaign in full swing. I now suspect we were fed false information about both of these talented women.”

His admission in an interview published on Thursday offers the latest glimpse into the Weinstein machine – the byzantine network of alleged enablers and informants, the gossip and threats Weinstein is accused of using to protect himself against sexual assault claims and punish those who rejected his advances.

Sorvino and Judd have both claimed they refused Weinstein’s pressure to have physical relationships, and Sorvino has said she felt “iced out” of the industry after rejecting his advances.

On seeing Jackson’s interview, Sorvino tweeted on Friday: “I burst out crying. There it is, confirmation that Harvey Weinstein derailed my career, something I suspected but was unsure. Thank you Peter Jackson for being honest. I’m just heartsick.”

fuck you sideways peter be a man grow some big balls never let anyone push you around

oh

too late

I could have sworn Mira was "blacklisted" because she is a shitty actress. What did she do that was so important it required her to be blacklisted?

R4 She won an Oscar.

[quote]What did she do that was so important it required her to be blacklisted?

Are you unable to read?

Mira was NOT a shitty actress.

The Mira Sorvino episode of Will and Grace is my all time favorite. FWIW...

I see some slander lawsuits coming.

oh fuck, this sucks for her. I'd cry, too.

"Intentional Interference with Business Advantage"

So, can we deduce that Fish Sticks boned the fillet for Harvey?

I see that she said she had her own Harvey moment but I think that she actually fucked him and I mean fucked him in the old style trade-off for stardom. She has way less talent than Sorvino. But it is funny that she can now claim NOT to have fucked him like he is going to contradict her. So funny.

So she's an award winning actress ready to sue for slander. How much could she have earned is the question, right? Fifty million? more?

They deserve recompense. Weinstein is a complete sociopath.

The only thing that makes me think Gwyneth is telling the truth is that she told Brad Pitt about it. If she were going to fuck for roles, I doubt she'd talk about the subject with her boyfriend -- or anyone.

You think when Harvey opens the pages of People magazine, he thinks "I've cum on half these bitches' faces"

Someone post of recent pic of PJ, I want to see if he got fat again.

Well, Peter Jackson isn't on good terms with Miramax anyway. They screwed him over with LOTR and it was New Line Cinema which saved the day and still the Weinsteins got their cut.

Sorvino being blacklisted is definitely believable. She got her Oscar in 1996 and essentially filmed her last studio film in 1998. She should have at least been able to book a supporting role.

Yeah, even Cuba Gooding, Jr., has worked more than Sorvino.

Plus Sorvino is beautiful AND can act. She is everything Paltro wants to be.

Uh fuck Peter Jackson. I bet he has other shitty things.

I hope her Father gets his hands on Whalestein.

I feel bad for Mira. At least one of them was Ashley Judd though. That keeps everything in the cosmos in balance.

This raises a question about Paul Sorvino. He is supposedly such a tough guy it raises an eyebrow he would have stayed quiet about this for so many years.

Interesting coincidence that Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino each played Marilyn Monroe in the same movie. Ashley was Norma Jean, and Mira was Marilyn. Bobby blacklisted Marilyn with a lot more finality then Harvey did.

I doubt that Peter Jackson would have cast either of them in the LOTR movies anyway.

Where’s that MEET THE FEEBLES sequel?

MEET THE FEEBLES is a creepy movie.

And DLers repeatedly said that Judd and Sorvino were full of shit for speculating that Weinstein fucked with their careers.

Reading this, it struck me just how easy it is for people to fuck with others' lives without the objects being aware of knowing the breadth and depth of the fuckery - or knowing of it at all.

And where the hell was Jackson's spine and those of other industry people who went along with Weinstein's bullshit without questioning him? Those assholes are complicit as well.

"And where the hell was Jackson's spine and those of other industry people who went along with Weinstein's bullshit without questioning him?"

At the time, he was very respected and people trusted his judgment. It's easy to bullshit about having no spine - 99% of you would have done the same damn thing.

I believe Paltrow. Even though he didn't fuck her, he could have pointed to her success and told all the other girls that he DID fuck, and that's how she got where she is. It would make the lie more effective the more successful Goop was, so she probably got a lot more jobs because of that.

I feel a bit bad for Ashley Judd. I like Mira Sorvino but she graduated from Harvard magna cum laude in East Asian Studies. If Harvey really blacklisted her, she had plenty of other choices to excel in life, academic or otherwise.

She could have even gone to Japan and become a multi-millionaire. Their most popular and highest paid star right now is a Bengali-Russian Japanese named Rola who has absolutely no talent whatsoever. Mira could do some period pieces at least like some of the other gaijin.

I read years ago that actors didn't want to work with Ashley Judd for some reason.

Now it sounds like someone was spreading falsehoods to derail her career.

God he’s a disgusting pig.

And of course - these won’t be the only two whose careers he’s wrecked. There’ll be others. And if some disgruntled former employees come forward - or better yet - provide emails with proof of this behavior - it could get really, really nasty. Just think of the stellar class action suit! They could go for millions surely?

He really deserves to be broken. Financially is a very good start!

Any word on possible criminal charges against him related to other stuff he’s been accused with?

Every time I think of the power he wielded and the way he treated people - makes my blood boil. He was such a classic bully - and he got away with it for ages! Surely there’ll be former staffers who have some sort of conscience and can help get the goods on him...

Ashley Judd has had some of the worst “blind items” written about her alleged inappropriate behavior on set. MiraSorvino not many. So maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle.

The thing is it takes very little to turn semi-normal people into crazy bitches with a few "he/she said this about you ...!" and pushing one's buttons. A harmless person can turn into a paranoid freak very quickly when he or she fears that everybody works against her.

All Weinstein had to do is say shit about Judd and Sorvino to the right people and it spread like wildfire and Judd and Sorvino didn't know what hit them and they are pariahs and have to deal with that somehow. That can turn any normal person into a crazy bitch (you want unpropfessional? I GIVE YOU UNPROFESSIONAL!!!!").

It's not just blind ambition that makes people do crazy things. People get crazy very quick in Hollywood, because you don't know who you can trust and who will backstab you, or talk smack behind your back, at any moment. In the end people get so paranoid that they drive away the few people they could have trusted. Hollywood fucks with your mind. Or any high stakes profession.

That's been an unresolved question about all this sexual harassment - if an actress ever refused Weinstein's advances, would he fuck with their careers?

it's a difficult question, because if it happened, the actresses would never be able to prove it. All they'd know is that they weren't getting offers, and they'd never know if it was because of a vengeful Weinstein, or because they weren't right for the roles they wanted, or because they'd just gone out of fashion among casting directors. So Weinstein would never admit he'd put the pad word on these gals in public, the gals themselves would never have proof... the only way we'd ever know if Weinstein was ruining the careers of women who refused him is if other industry players came out and said they weren't hiring certain actresses because of something Weinstein said.

This is as close to proof as we're ever likely to get, for what it's worth.

I am sure Weinstein got into many women's heads convinced that he did stall their careers by badmouthing them. Which is an easy thing to do in a profession where you usually face more rejection than getting cast.

I've heard Ashley is a bit crazy but not horrible from a friend who worked on a charity with her, but she has had a pretty good B actress career. Mira's just went off the rails. She never struck me as difficult.

I like Mira Sorvino. I hope she recovers her career.

That's the thing, R38, you'd never KNOW. Even if he didn't do much damage to anyone's career, or only put out the bad word in a few cases, the fear would always be there when an actress had to deal with him personally.

Which couldn't be avoided, in an industry where meetings and auditions really do take place in hotel suites or people's homes. You just never know which meeting might get too personal, or when a misplaced word might make a powerful enemy, or which pervs will take "no" for an answer.

This is the first time I've actually felt hatred for Harvey Anne Weinstein. He's the reason Mira Sorvino doesn't work much? Die, bitch. Just get yourself over with.

Harvey, Goop and Liv

Reese Witherspoon was originally considered for the role of Arwen.

Actor who got the part: Liv Tyler

Thank God for that R44

R27 truer words never spoken, yet it’s still more inventive & original than LOTR.

The director of Bad Santa says he was interested in hiring Mira, but everytime he would mention her, Harvey would hang up on him.

[quote] And DLers repeatedly said that Judd and Sorvino were full of shit for speculating that Weinstein fucked with their careers.

Oh yes, I remember reading here that Sorvino is a total nightmare to work with, and that was the reason she doesn't work much. Judd obviously has been getting tons of she's a bitch-posts written about her as well. Once again a good reminder that anonymous gossip can be used to destroy people when there isn't any real proof behind it.

I've liked Sorvino in everything I"ve seen her in. I wish she would've done more feature film work post 2000s but she still acts quite a bit on television. And yeah, she would've been a better choice than Lauren Graham in Bad Santa.

If you ever had any doubts that the system does not only not favor women, but actually work against them, you’d definitely won’t anymore after this.

Just a bunch of bro dudes ganging up on women.

Happens at my job everyday....IT

R43

R34 Judd had a rather crazy affair with Jack Nicholson . Judd used to call him daddy.

“Judd used to call him daddy.”

Women who were sexually molested as children tend to do that.

R50 is right. Happens from about the fifth grade, on. The smart girls figure it out and play dumb. The pretty ones, that is. They use their emerging sexuality to make up for the loss of prestige in the classically feminine way of power. The smart ugly girls focus on their books and beat the academic crap out of their male competition only to work their asses off twice as hard to get paid 70 cents on the dollar compared to their less ambitious male counterparts. Female old and ugly should just start digging their graves early or learn to cook when they're young.

R28, you know when people are fucking with you, you just can't do anything. I've had it happen to me, by a producer whose role model was... Harvey Weinstein.

And r35 is correct, too.

Give the woman some respect

[quote]Mira would've been a better choice than Lauren Graham in Bad Santa.

And in the Gilmore Girls. And in Parenthood.

[quote]The only thing that makes me think Gwyneth is telling the truth is that she told Brad Pitt about it. If she were going to fuck for roles, I doubt she'd talk about the subject with her boyfriend -- or anyone.

I don't believe Gwyneth told Pitt anything. She's just saying that because it makes her sound like some prize to be fought over. Pitt goes along with it and he sounds like a knight in shining armor. I bet there's nothing Goop wouldn't have done for a good role.

Judd is still crazy, btw. This doesn't change that. But like everyone else, I feel bad for Mira Sorvino.

I bet Harvey made Gwen squirt.

Are we to infer that Lauren Graham sucked Weinstein's dicklet?

[quote]I bet Harvey made Gwen squirt.

By saying the words "and the Oscar goes to ..."

Brad Pitt is a former escort of Thom Racina. Goop, Angelina, Jennifer Aniston, Juliet Lewis and every other women he fake dated were all beards

So what happened that Witherspoon lost role to Liv Tyler? Did Weinstein recommended her to Jackson or what?

He's just never seemed gay to me, R63. I've known about Thom Racina, but I just have never gotten a gay vibe from Pitt.

Pitt has probably been on the casting couch more than any other actor in history.

Everyone hates Mira Sorvino. She and daddy Paul are nasty people. Ask anyone who ever worked with them. Lisa Kudrow, Janine Garafalo and Alan Cummings all hatred her when filming Romy. I’m speaking from first hand knowledge. Harvey had better taste and probably blacklisted her because she is such an unpleasnat and difficult human being.

Pitt also lies about his height he's at best 172/3 not 181 cm as he claims!

Angelina is 5'4 which was the height on an early modelling card

compare Pitt's height to Aniston in this picture

Pitt had hair transplant around ten years ago and He had multiple nose jobs and many other cosmetic surgeries. he had his ears done and a nose job and had jaw implants inserted before his first role

He at the very least had 3 nose jobs to this day one before he started acting one after Kalifornia and the other one after Troy

Brad Pitt used a body double for Fury

[quote]I like Mira Sorvino. I hope she recovers her career.

I do too. Maybe, she'll have a comeback via TV like Winona Ryder.

I think Liv Tyler is a much better choice for LOTR than Reese W. Liv has an ethereal spacey quality that worked for the part; I'm not sure Witherspoon would have been right.

During the lengthy casting process for The Lord Of The Rings, Uma Thurman's name was heavily linked with both Arwen and Eowyn

Very interesting!

Reese Witherspoon was originally considered for the role of Arwen. Actor who got the part: Liv Tyler

Reese Witherspoon turned down a lead role in Scream

Reese Witherspoon was reportedly offered the role of Peggy Dodd in The Master, but Amy Adams was later cast.

There are all Weinstein films!???

Liv has an ethereal [bold]spacey[/bold] quality

I can't believe that the Ashley Jugg got a job in the industry. She's got a fat, very tired face.

I DEFINITELY can't believe that the woman got a job playing the beard/wife in that lousy Cole Porter movie with Kline.

Mira Sorvino really can't act. She can't. Oscars go to people who can't act pretty regularly.

But she's just as good as easily half the people in Hollywood, has good camera presence, charisma, and an Oscar under her belt. She wasn't avoided because she's a bad actress -- she was backlisted, obviously, and she has quite a civil suit waiting for her if she wants, because her entire career was ruined by HW.

I agree with r76. Couldn't believe it when she won an Oscar for Mighty Aphrodite, and she wasn't believable in Romy either.

"So what happened that Witherspoon lost role to Liv Tyler? "

Because Tyler was actually right for it? She had the kind of ethereal beauty and calm personality that made her work as an ageless elven beauty, plus she had to have cost less than the biggest names of the day.

Sorvino might possibly have worked as Eowyn, if she could have handled the English accent required. Eowyn should have been a tall strapping girl who could pass as a young man, given dim light and a suit of armor. Miranda Otto got the part, but she really was too small and frail.

Both things can be true - Sorvino can be a megabitch from hell to work with, and Harvey could have been trying to ruin her career because she laughed at his nubbin dick or something.

The fact that she actually was difficult to work with would have given Harvey's slams a lot of force, and if that's what he was doing it was very clever of him. If he'd called everyone he knew and said "Do me a favor and don't hire her" then he'd have owed everyone in the industry, if he'd said "Hire her and I'm your enemy for life" then he'd have made an enemy of everyone he called. But by saying "She's even more difficult than you've heard", he was both ruining her career and acting like he was doing all the directors and casting people a favor by warning them of a potential problem. No wonder he stayed on top for so long.

"That's been an unresolved question about all this sexual harassment - if an actress ever refused Weinstein's advances, would he fuck with their careers?"

Why wouldn't he? I know Kevin Spacey got guys fired from House of Cards if they spurned his advances. That's what creeps do.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

Lord, Weinstein looks gross. The beautiful Georgina Chapman must really have been desperate.

For those of you asking where was his spine, Weinstein didn’t say ‘I forbid you to hire her, she wouldn’t play ball,” he said, “She’s a nightmare to work with. I have the production’s best interest in mind.”

prance pony prance

Harvey and Liv. Was she one of his girls?

LOTR wasn't produced or distributed by Weinstein.

Production companies: WingNut Films, The Saul Zaentz Company

Distributed bytNew Line Cinema

Liv Tyler as Arwen Undomiel: an elven princess of Rivendell and Aragorn's lover. The filmmakers approached Tyler after seeing her performance in Plunkett & Macleane, and New Line Cinema leaped at the opportunity of having one Hollywood star in the film. Actress Helena Bonham Carter had expressed interest in the role. Peter Jackson (or Harvey Wankenstein?) wanted to cast Uma Thurman! as Arwen, but Thurman pulled out due to pregnancy (thank god), Tyler came to shoot on short occasions, unlike the rest of the actors. She was one of the last actors to be cast, on 25 August 1999.

R78 Miranda Otto got the part

She's an amazing actor

I like Liv but I want to know if Weinstein had something to casting her in LOTR or not?

I remember reading some gossip years ago about Mira being really full of herself. Someone who knew her said she was constantly mentioning her education, acting and the Oscar obviously. She was rumoured to be a real bitch, and would swear and berate people if they annoyed her. One of the things mentioned was about a wrap party she invited herself to, apparently no one was paying much attention to her so she stormed into the middle of the room and began imposing herself on some executive or other who was in the middle of a conversation, when the guy politely tried to move away he was supposed to have trod on her foot by accident and Mira, being the bitch she was reamed the poor guy out in front of an entire room of people. I don't think Harvey is entirely responsible for her rep in the industry, she obviously had form and when she crossed him for whatever reason he played it up and got her blacklisted.

One thing this whole episode has taught me is to be verrryyyy wary of all "insider gossip".

^ Well the "insider gossip" about Spacey that was posted here turned out to be true

More:

Second Director Says Weinsteins Blacklisted Actress Mira Sorvino From Film

Terry Zwigoff’s claim comes on the heels of a similar allegation made this week by “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson.

Mira invented Post-Its.

I do remember reading some similar gossip to R90's here some years ago. It sounded like the usual young-actress-too-full- of-herself. Although now it's more difficult to accept uncritically.

The most negative stuff I've read about her though concerns her marriage. Her husband, who is 14 years younger, sounded like a piece of work. I specifically remember a story about his participation in a softball game where he became angry and tried to get physical with the object(s) of his ire, embarrassing Mira who was there to witness it. There was another story or two about his temper and, of course, DL gave the marriage another year or two. This was about 10 years ago. So, they've been married for 13 years and have four kids. I assumed she slowed her work down because she had a family.

I am sorry, but I cannot see Reese Witherspoon as an action star doing all the fighting and riding set up (stunt double doing the real thing though) required for a movie like Lord of the Rings. I guess, in a way, Reese is type cast in rom-coms or family drama roles. Nobody remembers "This Means War" anyway. At least not for her.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

I believe you @HarveyWankenstein

R97 'Mr. Weinstein did not blacklist Mira Sorvino, and was in fact working with her during the timeframe in question on 'Mimic,' the Guillermo Del Toro film.

'Also during that time, she was dating Quentin Tarantino, who was the foundation and backbone of Miramax.

'At the time in question, no one could have blacklisted or derailed the career of Ms. Sorvino, who had recently won both an Academy and a Golden Globe award and was being courted for leading roles by all seven studios and every major broadcast network.

The statement reads: 'As Peter Jackson explained in his own statement, Bob and Harvey Weinstein had nothing to do with 'Lord of the Rings.'

'If Ashley Judd said she was in conversations with Mr. Jackson and reviewed sketches, it was under New Line, which had casting authority, not Miramax. Miramax never provided sketches to anyone.

'Around the time of 'Rings,' Mr. Weinstein cast Ms. Judd in 'Frida' and years later, in 'Crossing Over.'

'Miramax had flown Ashley to New York for casting discussions and to meet the production team for 'Good Will Hunting.'

'While Ashley was the top choice for Miramax and Mr. Weinstein, the role went to Minnie Driver, who was the star and director's preference. Minnie did a brilliant job and he believes Ashley would have as well.

Yes, Weinstein, we believe YOU and not these 2 directors.

Witherspoon certainly can ride a horse

Did Weinstein even put this much effort into denying the rape allegations?

I believe that Eva Green and Samantha Morton were both blacklisted by Harvey

I wonder about Lupita Nyongo, who won an Oscar and didn't get any offers thereafter, and who wrote a piece about politely turning down several advances from Weinstein.

Lupita's story was denied by Harvey

Charlize and Ashley look very similar

[quote]Mr. Weinstein has a different recollection of the events, but believes Lupita is a brilliant actress and a major force for the industry. [bold]Last year, she sent a personal invitation to Mr. Weinstein to see her in her Broadway show Eclipsed.[/bold]

R105 Lupita got offers but she's just too lazy to do an actual work

R108. Mr Weinstein has a different recollection of the events. Just as Mr. Weinstein has a different vision of his reflection than that of any mirror in existence.

[quote]Aspects of Harvey’s denial are insincere. He is basically saying that “this blacklisting couldn’t be true because New Line cast the movie”. That’s a deflection from the truth.

[quote]In the 18 months we developed the Lord of the Rings at Miramax, we had many casting conversations with Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein and their executives.

[quote]During this period, no offers were made to actors because that occurs after a film is greenlit, and Miramax never greenlit these films.

[quote]However, many conversations occurred internally regarding potential casting.  Fran Walsh and I recall that Morgan Freeman, Paul Scofield, David Bowie, Liam Neeson, Natascha McElhone, Claire Forlani, Francesca Annis, Max von Sydow, and Daniel Day Lewis were some of the names discussed with Miramax for possible roles in The Lord of the Rings movies.

[quote]Amongst the many names raised, Fran and I expressed our enthusiasm for Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino. In fact, we met with Ashley and discussed two possible roles with her.  After this meeting, we were told by Miramax to steer clear of both Ashley and Mira, because they claimed to have had “bad experiences” with these particular actresses in the past.

[quote]Fran Walsh was in the same meeting, and remembers these negative comments about Ashley and Mira as clearly as I do. We have no reason to make it up.

[quote][bold]This type of comment is not unusual – it can happen with any studio on any film, when different actor’s names come up in conversation – but once you hear negative feedback about somebody, you don’t forget it.[/bold]

[quote]We were not in a position to offer Ashley or Mira a role in the movies, but we attempted to have their names added to a list, for when casting began. Each role can have many actors’ names listed for future auditions and meetings.

[quote]In these film maker/studio relationships, there has to be consensus in casting choices – either side can generally veto suggested names for various reasons, and in pre-Lord of the Rings days, we didn’t have the power to override the studio on casting choices.

[quote][bold]The movies changed hands from Miramax to New Line before casting actually got underway – but because we had been warned off Ashley and Mira by Miramax, and we were naive enough to assume we’d been told the truth, Fran and I did not raise their names in New Line casting conversations.[/bold]

Caught again--Harveys getting caught AGAIN lying.

JUST STOP ALREADY

Thanks R111--great read!

Ashley Judd has done reasonably well for herself, but Mira was basically sunk.

Decent of Jackson to back up his story. His second statement is pretty convincing!

And BTW, I'm in touch enough with the fandom to say that there are no rumors of sexual impropriety floating around Jackson. Of course he's received plenty of artistic criticism, and he's been called a cheap bastard because he's filthy rich himself but doesn't always want to pay other people what they're worth. That's all I got.

fake news?

Er, no?

OK, that sucks but she still left her dogs alone in an apartment for a long enough time period that they eat each other.