George Clooney Calls Harvey Weinstein's Alleged Misconduct 'Indefensible'

George Clooney has joined other powerful showbiz voices denouncing producer Harvey Weinsteinā€™s alleged sexual misconduct.

ā€œItā€™s indefensible,ā€ the actor told The Daily Beast on Monday. ā€œThatā€™s the only word you can start with.ā€

Weinstein, an Oscar-winning movie executive, preyed on women for decades, settling financially with at least eight who accused him of sexual harassment, according to a New York Times report.

Clooney noted that Weinstein gave him his ā€œfirst big breakā€ as an actor in ā€œFrom Dusk Till Dawn,ā€ and as a director on ā€œConfessions of a Dangerous Mind.ā€ Clooney insisted he never knew Weinstein was a serial predator.

ā€œA lot of people are doing the ā€˜you had to knowā€™ thing right now, and yes, if youā€™re asking if I knew that someone who was very powerful had a tendency to hit on young, beautiful women, sure,ā€ Clooney said to the Daily Beast. ā€œBut I had no idea that it had gone to the level of having to pay off eight women for their silence, and that these women were threatened and victimized.ā€

George Clooney and Harvey Weinstein share a laugh in 2013. Clooney called the accusations against Weinstein "disturbing" in part because many people may have covered them up. (Photo: Michael Kovac via Getty Images)
George Clooney and Harvey Weinstein share a laugh in 2013. Clooney called the accusations against Weinstein "disturbing" in part because many people may have covered them up. (Photo: Michael Kovac via Getty Images)

A day after Meryl Streep told HuffPost that Weinsteinā€™s actions were ā€œinexcusable,ā€ Clooney stepped up the criticism of Weinstein, who was fired this week from his own company.

ā€œItā€™s disturbing on a whole lot of levels, because there had to be a lot of people involved in covering that up,ā€ Clooney said.

Visit The Daily Beast for the full story.

Weinstein and Clooney, pictured in 2005, collaborated on Clooney's directorial debut, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind." (Photo: Evan Agostini via Getty Images)
Weinstein and Clooney, pictured in 2005, collaborated on Clooney's directorial debut, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind." (Photo: Evan Agostini via Getty Images)

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.