Jennifer Lawrence Slams Harvey Weinstein’s Alleged Boast That She Slept With Him, Calls Him A ‘Predator’

Jennifer Lawrence is fighting back against a report that Harvey Weinstein boasted about having a sexual relationship with her, calling the disgraced movie mogul a “predator.”

This week, a lawsuit from an aspiring actress claimed that Weinstein sexually assaulted her on a series of occasions and claimed that he helped make Lawrence a star after she had a sexual relationship with him. Lawrence responded in a statement to People magazine, saying that she felt horrible for the women who had been assaulted by the former Hollywood mogul and denying that she ever had a relationship with him.

“My heart breaks for all the women who were victimized by Harvey Weinstein,” Lawrence said. “I have never had anything but a professional relationship with him. This is yet another example of the predatory tactics and lies that he engaged in to lure countless women.”

Harvey Weinstein’s representative also denied the allegations, saying that the two only had a “professional and respectful relationship” and said it was disappointing that Lawrence had been “dragged into this ugly attempt at defamation.”

As dozens of women have come forward to claim that Weinstein sexually harassed or assaulted them, Lawrence has been one of the most vocal in her criticism of Weinstein, who helped to cast Lawrence in a number of her most famous roles.

Earlier in the year, Weinstein’s lawyers asked a judge to dismiss a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of all women who worked with him. In the argument, Weinstein’s lawyer said that the lawsuit would include women like Meryl Street and Jennifer Lawrence, both of whom had said they only had a professional relationship with him.

Both Streep and Lawrence slammed the statement, distancing themselves from Weinstein’s attempt to use their statements in his favor.

“Harvey Weinstein and his company are continuing to do what they have always done which is to take things out of context and use them for their own benefit,” Lawrence said in a statement in February (via Deadline). “This is what predators do, and it must stop.”

“For the record, while I was not victimized personally by Harvey Weinstein, I stand behind the women who have survived his terrible abuse and I applaud them in using all means necessary to bring him to justice whether through criminal or civil actions. Time’s up.”

Harvey Weinstein bragged of sex with Jennifer Lawrence, lawsuit claims https://t.co/Ax8bx7mKus pic.twitter.com/NvcW2mEk7R

— Variety (@Variety) December 15, 2018

Harvey Weinstein is facing civil suits from women who claimed that he sexually assaulted them as well as a rape case in New York. He has maintained his innocence, saying all relationships were consensual.