Meryl Streep: Harvey Weinstein Is ‘Pathetic’ for Dropping My Name in Legal Defense

Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep lashed out at disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein on Wednesday, saying his lawyers’ attempt to get a class-action sexual misconduct lawsuit tossed by dropping her name was “pathetic.” Streep was referring to a 26-page memorandum filed Tuesday in which Weinstein’s lawyers claimed the lawsuit’s class-action status was “fatally overbroad” because Streep and actress Jennifer Lawrence had publicly stated they did not experience any of Weinstein’s alleged sexual misconduct. The document quoted comments Lawrence made to Oprah Winfrey in which she said the producer had “only ever been nice” to her, and Streep’s previous statement that he had always been “respectful” in their working relationship. “Harvey Weinstein’s attorneys use of my (true) statement—that he was not sexually transgressive or physically abusive in our business relationship—as evidence that he was not abusive with many OTHER women is pathetic and exploitive,” Streep told Deadline Hollywood. She said he “will pay” for the “criminal actions” he is accused of.