Three of Harvey Weinstein’s most outspoken accusers introduced a powerful video montage Sunday at the Oscars that featured a diverse group of this year’s nominees calling for more inclusion in Hollywood.
Actresses Annabella Sciorra, Ashley Judd and Salma Hayek praised Hollywood’s shakeup as the Me Too movement gained strength in the last year, and acknowledged there was more work to be done.
“This year, many spoke their truth, and the journey ahead is long, but slowly a new path has emerged,” said Sciorra, referencing sexual misconduct allegations against powerful players in Hollywood.
“The changes we are witnessing are being driven by the powerful sound of new voices, of different voices, of our voices, joining together in a mighty chorus that is finally saying ‘time’s up,’” Judd said, alluding to the “Time’s Up” movement to end inequality and sexual misconduct in the workplace.
Hayek added: ″So we salute those unstoppable spirits who kicked ass and broke through the biased perceptions against their gender, their race and ethnicity to tell their stories.”
As the Oscars celebrated its 90th anniversary, Judd called on the awards show to focus on “equality, diversity, inclusion, intersectionality” in its next 90 years.
“That’s what this year has promised us,” Judd said.
The 3.5-minute video montage featured interviews with trailblazing directors, writers and actors, including Ava DuVernay, Greta Gerwig and Kumail Nanjiani.
Judd, Sciorra and Hayek are just three of more than 80 women who have accused now-disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual misconduct.
Judd first publicly accused Weinstein in a bombshell New York Times report published in early October that helped ignite the wave of allegations against the film producer. She said Weinstein invited her to his hotel room for a business meeting in the 1990s. When she arrived, he was wearing a bathrobe and asked her to massage him and watch him shower.
A couple weeks later, Sciorra joined those speaking out against Weinstein. She told The New Yorker that Weinstein raped her in the early 1990s and continued to sexually harass her for several years.
Hayek came forward in December, penning an essay for The New York Times in which she called Weinstein a “monster.” She said she, too, had experienced Weinstein’s repeated sexual harassment and unwanted sexual advances, including massage and oral sex requests.
“I hope that adding my voice to the chorus of those who are finally speaking out will shed light on why it is so difficult, and why so many of us have waited so long,” Hayek wrote. “Men sexually harassed because they could. Women are talking today because, in this new era, we finally can.”