In the midst of the #MeToo movement last year, Salma Hayek wrote a first-person account about how Harvey Weinstein repeatedly harassed her while filming 2002’s Frida — during which time he allegedly asked her to shower with him, have sex with him, and blackmailed her to include a gratuitous nude scene into the narrative. “My mind understood that I had to do it, but my body wouldn’t stop crying and convulsing,†she recalled, realizing she ultimately had to do the nude scene out of fear. “At that point, I started throwing up while a set frozen still waited to shoot. I had to take a tranquilizer, which eventually stopped the crying but made the vomiting worse.â€
Similarly, Lupita Nyong’o also wrote an essay about her own sexual harassment experience with Weinstein, revealing how she was cajoled into giving him a private massage in his home. Dozens of women have accused Weinstein of various forms of harassment and abuse over the past few months, with Weinstein only directly issuing statements of denial about Hayek’s and Nyong’o’s claims. In a new interview with Variety, Hayek believes it’s because they’re not white.
“We are the easiest to get discredited,†Hayek explained. “It is a well-known fact. So he went back, attacking the two women of color, in hopes that if he could discredit us … now is the time for action.†This is the second time Hayek has discussed her Weinstein experience. She also revealed earlier this year how she “felt ashamed†about waiting so long to tell her story, because it “felt like my pain was so small compared to all the other stories.â€