One would be hard-pressed to find a man as almost universally reviled as Harvey Weinstein. The odious Hollywood producer triggered a barrage of accusations by dozens of women, single-handedly kicking off the #MeToo movement. Friends and allies have denounced him left and right. He’s the first name many people think when they hear the phrase “persona non grata.”
So it was probably just a matter of time before someone took a swing at the guy.
According to TMZ, that time has come.
Weinstein was dining at Elements restaurant at the Sanctuary Camelback Mountain Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona, with his “sober coach” when two men sat down beside him.
A man whom TMZ only identified as Steve told the gossip site that he approached Weinstein, telling the mogul that he enjoyed his films and asked for a photograph. Steve then claims Weinstein got belligerent and told him to “buzz off.”
This conflicts with the story being told by the restaurant manager, who claims Weinstein was polite about it and simply said he had no interest in being photographed right then.
About 9:00 p.m., Weinstein and his coach got up to leave the restaurant. That’s when Steve, with a friend recording on his cell phone, approached Weinstein a second time. Steve reportedly said, “You’re such a piece of s*** for what you did to these women,” then took a swing at him.
Steve claims he hit the producer twice, knocking him backward and off balance, to the point that Weinstein almost fell.
Again, the restaurant manager contradicts Steve’s side of the story, saying neither punch connected.
[LANGUAGE WARNING]
One thing that the two do agree on, according to TMZ, is that the person recording the incident asked Weinstein if he wanted to call the police. Weinstein declined.
Whether he declined because he figured he would get enough of the legal system soon enough or for some other reason is pure speculation, but I know which way my gut is telling me to go.
It’s not shocking that someone took a swing at Weinstein. Whether the punches landed or not is irrelevant. I suspect Weinstein will have a few more folks try and hit him down the road as well. After all, he’s now the poster boy for men behaving badly. No one likes what he did; just the stuff he’s admitted to is troubling, and that doesn’t even get into the allegations from people like Asia Argento and Rose McGowan, which are even worse.
Frankly, he’s fortunate if the only things coming his way are legal issues and a few punches.
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