The Harvey Weinstein allegations just got even creepier.
In a new feature in the Hollywood Reporter about shooting sex scenes in the #MeToo era, sources involved in the making of Todd Haynes’ 2015 drama Carol intimated that disgraced mega-producer Harvey Weinstein may have kept footage of sex scenes between Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara to himself.
According to the Reporter, most Hollywood nudity riders say producers should use “good faith efforts” to delete the scenes not used in the final film. However, something as flimsy as “good faith efforts” apparently doesn’t mean much!
“I don’t even think it’s possible to destroy anything in the digital age,” one Carol insider told the Reporter. “The idea of anything being erased from existence is naive.”
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A representative for Weinstein told the Reporter that he hasn’t kept any of the footage of Mara and Blanchett. Carol producer Christine Vachon added, “The Weinstein Co. and Harvey never had access to dailies or even rough cuts. We showed TWC the final cut and then delivered that cut and that cut only. There was never any access to ‘unused sex scenes.'”
Because of instances like this, lawyers are being even more caution in making sure shot footage gets destroyed.
“We used to say, ‘You’ve got to destroy it,’ And they said, ‘We’ll keep it in a secure location.’ But things get hacked, things get stolen, so we definitely push for outtakes, trims, deleted scenes, alternative takes — all that stuff — to be destroyed and for the destruction to be confirmed to us in writing,” attorney Jamie Feldman told the Reporter. “And then we have remedies paragraphs — like if despite their best efforts, something leaks. Some intern puts it out. That’s up [online] forever. So we need to be able to force the studio to go take that down, or even threaten injunctive relief or liquidated damages.”