Disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein’s former studio appeared to inch closer toward bankruptcy Monday over complaints that talks to buy the troubled production house had collapsed, leaving it with “no choice” but to go to the wall.
The Weinstein Company said that it had failed to reach a deal with an investor group led by Maria Contreras-Sweet, who served in Barack Obama’s administration, for a reported $500 million despite battling to make it palatable to prosecutors.
Contreras-Sweet, a Mexican immigrant who said she had been inspired by the #MeToo sexual harassment watershed in her bid to turn the company around and have it led by women, responded by saying she was “surprised” to learn of its complaints in the press.
“It was my understanding that we were close to signing the transaction documents in a couple of days. Regrettably, it appears that this transaction has now ended,” she said in a statement.
It was not immediately clear whether the deal can still be salvaged in some way. Weinstein was sacked as company chairman in October after bombshell exposes accused him of years of sexual harassment, assault and even rape.
Any bankruptcy will cast further doubt on the fate of several finished movies, which have languished on the shelf since the scandal blew up, with no release dates announced.
They include historical drama “The Current War,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Thomas Edison, “Mary Magdalene,” a religious drama starring Rooney Mara, and “The War With Grandpa,” a comedy starring Robert De Niro.
In a letter to Contreras-Sweet on Sunday, Weinstein Company representatives said they had worked “tirelessly” to accommodate principles laid out by New York state attorney general Eric Schneiderman.
The prosecutor sued the firm earlier this month fearing that the imminent sale could leave victims of Weinstein’s alleged sexual misconduct without adequate redress.
