'It scared me': Paris Hilton reveals how Harvey Weinstein followed her to bathroom at Cannes Film Festival when she was 19
MALIBU, CALIFORNIA: In a new row of accusations against Harvey Weinstein, Parison Hilton recalled an uncomfortable incident where Harvey Weinstein allegedly followed her to the bathroom during the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. The model who was 19 at the time, revealed that she went to attend the annual amfAR gala for AIDS research at the festival which was hosted by Weinstein that year.
"Oh, you want to be an actress?", asked the disgraced media mogul when the socialite met him a day before the gala while she "was at lunch with my girlfriend and he came up to the table." Responding to Weinstein's question, Hilton said, "Yeah, I really want to be in a movie'."
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'Security came and literally carried him away'
Recalling the beginning of the disturbing incident during the Cannes Film Festival, Hilton said, "I was a teenager, so I was impressed by him. I was like, 'Oh my god, Harvey Weinstein is so cool!' and he said, 'Well, we should have a meeting. You can come up to my room and read scripts' and I just didn't want to go, so I never went."
The businesswoman then explained Weinstein being aggressive with her later in the night at the event. "Ya wanna be a star?," he yelled at Hilton after he allegedly chased her into the women's restroom, according to Variety.
"I went into the bathroom and then he followed me. He tried to open the door, he was hammering on the door, banging on it. And I wouldn't open it, because I was like, 'I'm in a stall, why do you want to come in here?' And I just wouldn't open it," she said. "And security came and literally carried him away and he was like [shouting], 'This is my party', going nuts. It scared me and freaked me out," Hilton continued.
Hilton was asked whether she had known the rumors about the former producer's behavior before they met at Cannes, and she answered, "Yeah, and it was just someone so powerful in Hollywood who everyone was terrified of."
Weinstein denied Hilton's allegations
According to Variety, a spokesperson for the convicted sex offender denied the claims by Hilton. He "never yelled at her and never followed her," said a spokesperson for Weinstein from L.A County Jail. "This never happened," said Weinstein and the spokesperson told the news outlet that "he had always treated Paris Hilton with the utmost respect and kindness, and always believed they had a cordial relationship."
The model's interview with Glamour UK was released on the day Weinstein was sentenced in a Los Angeles court to 16 years behind bars for raping Italian actress Evgeniya Chernyshova. In a 2020 conviction in a New York case, the 70-year-old is already serving a 23-year sentence.