While the list of women Harvey Weinstein has sexually harassed continues to grow as more women come forward, Hollywood is desperately trying to change. The scandal began with the New York Times releasing the stories of eight women who kept quiet for decades. The number of women accusing Weinstein of Sexual Harassment has grown to over 40 in the past few weeks, including A-list actresses like Gwenyth Paltrow. Director and friend of Weinstein, Quentin Tarantino, talked to the Times on Thursday about his knowledge of the issue.

Not secondhand

While most people close to Weinstein have released statements sharing their condolences for the victims, Tarantino decided to share his shame.

According to his interview with the New York Times, the director knew about many incidents of Weinstein's harassment. The two have worked together on projects spanning over 20 years, meaning Tarantino was always close to him.

In the interview, he admitted that he ignored Weinstein's behavior. He said that the things he heard weren't rumors or secondhand accounts of incidents. He was completely aware of many things the producer did to women in Hollywood.

When he started dating actress Mira Sorvino years ago, she informed him of the unwanted advances Weinstein made on her. The director claims that he just thought Weinstein was very interested and hung up on her. He couldn't believe the stories she told but figured that since the two were then together, there would be no more harassment.

Failing to connect

Tarantino told the Times that he is most ashamed for "marginalizing" the incidents. He said that although he knew of a few stories, he did not even consider the fact that they could be apart of a bigger issue. The director even admitted that he knew about the settlement Weinstein reached with actress Rose McGowan, who recently claimed she was raped.

While Tarantino is ashamed of his failure to speak out about what he knew, he addressed the fact that most of Hollywood is failing more by not speaking out now. According to the director, anyone who knew Weinstein had heard of at least one incident of his sexual harassment.

"I’m calling on the other guys who knew more to not be scared," he said.

Tarantino urged other men of Hollywood to share what they knew in order to create a safer space for the women in Hollywood and all other industries. The director also told the New York Times that he reached out to Weinstein after the allegations surfaced but never heard back from him.

Weinstein is currently undergoing treatment in Arizona following his expulsion from both his company and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
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