by Paris Hilton has described the horrific abuse of Harvey Weinstein, saying he followed her into a bathroom when she was 19.
Hilton’s recollection of the encounter was published in Glamor UK’s cover story on Thursday, the day the disgraced producer was sentenced to 16 years in prison in the Los Angeles case.
Weinstein – who is already serving 23 years after being convicted of rape and sexual assault in a trial in New York – was convicted of raping and sexually assaulting an Italian actress in 2013.
Weinstein plans to appeal both convictions, Variety reported.
Hilton told the publication that she was 19 when she met Weinstein before he hosted the amfAR (The Foundation for AIDS Research) gala held during the Cannes Film Festival in 2000.
She said Weinstein, who had approached her and a friend while they were both having lunch, asked if she had Hollywood aspirations and invited her to his room to read scripts.
“I didn’t want to go, so I never went,” Hilton said.
Later, on the night of the gala, Weinstein followed her to a restroom and yelled, “Do you want to be a star?” Hilton said.
“I went into the bathroom and then he followed me,” she said.
“He tried to open the door, he was hammering on the door, banging on it. And I don’t open it, because I was like, ‘I’m in a stall, why do you want to come in here?’ And I don’t open it. And security came and literally carried him away and he was like (yelling), ‘This is my party,’ getting worse. It scared me and scared me.”
She told the publication that she was aware of rumors about Weinstein’s behavior and that “everyone was afraid” of him, who at the time was a producer with enormous power in Hollywood.
“I didn’t even want to say anything about it because I was like, ‘I don’t want people to get mad at me for saying anything,’ because it was just something to know,” Hilton said. .
“It was just like that and people were like, ‘Okay, turn a blind eye.’”
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Glamor UK did not receive a comment from Weinstein’s representatives, but a spokesperson told Variety that Weinstein said the contact “never” took place between him and Hilton.
“He always treated Paris Hilton with respect and kindness, and always believed they had a cordial relationship. There were a lot of people at AmFar, and this is probably false,” the spokesperson said.
“Unfortunately, Paris Hilton is trying to enter the current news cycle using her name with another creative story. Too bad it’s all too convenient and seems popular to say it without backing anything up.”
The latest allegations against Weinstein come as Evgeniya Chernyshova, who testified that Weinstein raped her in the 2013 case, called herself “Jane Doe 1” and said she “wanted her life back” in a story with The Reporter Hollywood.
Chernyshova told the publication that she believes the four women who accused the disgraced producer of rape in the Los Angeles trial.
“This is not just my victory, this is our victory,” Chernyshova said of the conviction.
She later said: “I finally have a voice and I can speak. As much as I wanted to destroy myself, to punish myself, I will do as much to rebuild myself. And to help others.”
