Spiegel Stuff: The N.Y.P.D. Is Officially Investigating Harvey Weinstein

Vanity Fair

ESSENTIAL INDUSTRY and AWARD NEWS FROM HOLLYWOOD, compiled by REBECCA KEEGAN

Thursday, October 12, 2017

It's Thursday, and I can't remember why I have the N.Y.P.D.'s number saved in my phone.

Hello from Los Angeles, where we're pointing fingers at Harvey Weinstein, welcoming John Wells and Shonda Rhimes to the TV Hall of Fame, and living out our revenge fantasies through the third season of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

THE BEAT GOES ON

The N.Y.P.D. confirmed to me Thursday morning that it is opening an investigation into Harvey Weinstein. "Based on information referenced in published news reports, the N.Y.P.D. is conducting a review to determine if there are any additional complaints relating to the Harvey Weinstein matter," the department said in a statement. "No filed complaints have been identified at this time." A call to Weinstein's criminal defense attorney, Blair Berk, was not immediately returned. When this scandal broke, amid bombshell news reports in The New York Times and The New Yorker, Weinstein's spokeswoman said he "unequivocally denied" any allegations of non-consensual sex. Additionally, the Associated Press reported that London police are investigating another sexual-assault allegation against Weinstein, which was made Wednesday and concerns "an alleged sexual assault in the London area in the 1980s." Weinstein was previously investigated by the N.Y.P.D. in 2015, when model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez accused the producer of groping her; the Manhattan district attorney ultimately declined to press charges.

Meanwhile, the competing narratives in Hollywood that "Everyone Knew" and "Everyone's Shocked" continue to unfold. Most of the people I've talked to say they knew Harvey Weinstein was a cad and a creep, but they didn't know there were numerous women harboring allegations of unwanted touching, sexual harassment, and sexual assault. For the men in Weinstein's inner circle, Bob Weinstein, David Glasser, and the remainder of the Weinstein Co.'s board, the issue is a lot more important than idle gossip. According to The New York Times' Megan Twohey, Weinstein's board was aware he was making payoffs to women at least as far back as 2015. Twohey cites interviews with attorney David Boies, who represented Weinstein in his 2015 contract negotiation, and Weinstein board member Lance Maerov, who said he assumed the payoffs involved consensual affairs. Maerov said he responded to Weinstein's behavior by instituting a new code of conduct at the company that included a detailed description of sexual harassment. "I don't know what else I could have done," Maerov said.

TRUMP TV

V.F.'s Katey Rich writes:

Breaking news: Trump resigns! O.K., fine; that's fake news for now. But with the president still picking fights with Puerto Rico and Robert Mueller closing in, isn't it time to start looking to the inevitable future? V.F. contributor Nell Scovell enlisted eight TV writers—among them Emmy winners Danny Zuker and Merrill Markoe—to imagine how a Trump resignation would go, both realistically and in a heightened, ready-for-primetime scenario. Zuker suggests a scene in which Trump flees the White House and hops onto a motorcycle with Sarah Palin; The Good Place writer Megan Amram imagines Trump in exile "doing exactly what he did in the presidency, playing golf and pretending to drive fire trucks." Plausible? Maybe not. But once the Trump administration is over, we may be able to look forward to a much funnier version playing out on television for decades to come.

LATE-NIGHT SHAKE-UP

V.F.'s Laura Bradley writes:

On Wednesday night, Samantha Bee delivered the righteously furious Harvey Weinstein monologue that female late-night viewers have been craving. While her male counterparts have largely stayed silent on the issue, Bee did not hold back, saying, "Listen up, creeps of Hollywood. We know who you are . . . Women talk to each other. And we talk to journalists. And we talk to lawyers. It's 2017. We don't have to put up with this shit. We are coming for you." It's worth asking why Bee had to pick up the slack in the first place, but starting Thursday, there's a chance she'll have some help: both Sarah Silverman and Robin Thede will premiere their own talk shows tonight, I Love You, America and The Rundown with Robin Thede. Both will debut at 11 p.m., on Hulu and BET respectively. Each of these women has a different comic perspective and voice from Bee's, as does Chelsea Handler, who is on hiatus from her Netflix show this week. Silverman's series promises to be a bit sillier, while Thede's promises to blend pop culture and politics with her own perspective, as seen most recently on Larry Wilmore's The Nightly Show, where Thede served as a head writer.

CRAZY EX-BEST FRIEND

V.F.'s Hillary Busis writes:

As Crazy Ex-Girlfriend star Donna Lynne Champlin discovered recently, there is only one thing TV viewers are more shocked by than a character getting an abortion—and that's a middle-aged woman exploding on screen with sweet, cathartic rage. Champlin, of course, has done both of those things as Paula on the CW's inventive musical comedy, which returns for its third season Friday. The series is casually progressive, which Champlin thinks is central to its charm: "Someone comes out as bisexual, [everyone else] go[es], 'Yeah, all right.' Paula is a size 14. They go, 'O.K.' Josh is Filipino and our lead is in love with him and everyone goes, 'Yeah, he's really attractive,'" Champlin tells V.F. contributor Carey Purcell. "We actively don't make a Very Special Episode about all of these things. Instead of trying to shine a light on the issue, which a lot of shows do, we sort of, kind of create the world in which we all want to live in already. Instead of using the show as a platform—which gets more attention, both good and bad—the show is just what we wish reality was."

HALL OF FAME

V.F.'s Yohana Desta writes:

The inductees for this year's TV Hall of Fame have arrived, and at least one of them is making history. This year, Shonda Rhimes, the only show-runner in town who basically owns a weekday, will become just the third black woman to earn the honor, following in the footsteps of Diahann Carroll and Oprah Winfrey. Her induction is especially impressive considering Rhimes's TV career began only 12 short years ago. Her impressive fellow inductees include Joan Rivers, writer and producer John Wells, art director and production designer Roy Christopher, and the entire inaugural cast of Saturday Night Live (Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman, and Gilda Radner). "All of these individuals are innovators who have shaped television and left an indelible mark on the medium and our culture," TV Academy Chairman and C.E.O. Hayma Washington said in a statement. The formal ceremony will take place on Nov. 15 at the Television Academy's Saban Media Center.

That's the news for this sunny Thursday in L.A. What are you seeing out there? Send tips, comments, and the best booth at the Polo Lounge to ‪Rebecca_Keegan@condenast.com. Follow me on Twitter @thatrebecca.