The organisation behind the Oscars has voted to expel Harvey Weinstein following numerous allegations of sexual assault made against the film producer.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said its board “voted well in excess of the required two-thirds majority” to expel him.
Its members include Hollywood figures such as Tom Hanks and Whoopi Goldberg.
Weinstein’s films have received more than 300 Oscar nominations and won 81.
The emergency board meeting followed an avalanche of accusations against the producer by more than two dozen women, including actresses Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Rose McGowan, who alleges that he raped her in a hotel room.
Police forces in the US and the UK are investigating the allegations.
Harvey Weinstein, 65, has insisted through a spokeswoman that any sexual contacts he had were consensual, and he denies accusations of criminal sexual harassment, rape and sexual assault.
The expulsion comes after Bob Weinstein told the Hollywood Reporter that his “sick and depraved” brother should be “kicked out” of the Academy.
In a statement, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said they voted to expel Weinstein “not simply to separate ourselves from someone who does not merit the respect of his colleagues but also to send a message that the era of wilful ignorance and shameful complicity in sexually predatory behaviour and workplace harassment in our industry is over”.
They added: “What’s at issue here is a deeply troubling problem that has no place in our society.” Weinstein’s expulsion means he will no longer be able to vote for nominees or winners in the Oscars.
Hollywood figures were quick to praise the move but some have called for the Academy to take similar action against other members
As the co-founder of Miramax Pictures and the Weinstein Company, Harvey Weinstein produced some of cinema’s most celebrated films, including Pulp Fiction, The English Patient, and Shakespeare in Love.
He has been thanked dozens of times in Oscar acceptance speeches, and in 2012 the actress Meryl Streep jokingly referred to him as “God” onstage.
But as accusations against Weinstein began to mount in recent days, film industry heavyweights came out to publicly condemn him and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (Bafta) suspended his membership.
The French government is reportedly considering revoking his Legion of Honour, France’s highest civilian distinction, and there have been calls from some British politicians for his honorary CBE title to be revoked.
Source: BBC