Catch and Kill

Harvey Weinstein meets with Dylan Howard, Lanny Davis, and an operative from Black Cube. Davis is a notorious lawyer and crisis manager who has worked with human rights abusers and other people at the center of scandals. Weinstein rants angrily about McGowan and her accusations against him. Davis advises him not to try to discredit all of his accusers because “it looks awful” (64).

Farrow searches through Auletta’s notes for more information. People slowly open up to him about the existence of documents and other survivors, though most people assume that Weinstein will eventually have the story squashed. Farrow attends Time magazine’s annual gala where Weinstein is also in attendance. Farrow watches Weinstein from across the room.

In May, Black Cube contacts Weinstein with news that “high quality intelligence and hard evidence” (66) is being obtained. A meeting is arranged with McGowan under the guise of a charity campaign. She sits down and talks openly, unaware of the true identity of her companion. 

Farrow is meets Ben Wallace who has been trying to write a story about Harvey Weinstein for New York magazine. Wallace speaks about his frustrations that so many people seemed to be double agents who reported everything back to Weinstein. He suspects that one source tried to record their conversation. Wallace was similarly perturbed by an email from the reporter Seth Freedman which promised a trove of information about a possible investigation. Freedman seemed to be trying to extricate information from Wallace so Wallace severed all contact. Weinstein himself became involved and began demanding meetings and making threats. Eventually Wallace and his editors gave up. He offers Farrow a list of his sources and contacts.

The other investigations Farrow works on at NBC earn him praise from his colleagues. Prestigious shows and industry figures begin to contact him to offer meetings. He meets again with Gutierrez in the hope that he can obtain the recording of Weinstein. He offers to make a recording of her recording in an attempt to circumvent any legal responsibility or risk. Farrow records two minutes of her audio files.

The next day Farrow goes to his colleague Tom Brokaw for advice regarding the bosses’ apparent desire to bury the story. Brokaw is initially enthusiastic and provides plenty of advice. When he hears about the subject, his tone changes. Brokaw discloses that he and Weinstein are friends but promises to keep quiet. Later, Farrow notices another barrage of threatening social media messages. The barrage ends with a photo of a pistol. 

Ben Wallace puts Farrow in touch with Emily Nestor, a former assistant of Harvey Weinstein. Farrow meets her the following week at the end of May. After some deliberation, she agrees to go on camera with hard evidence of sexual assault. Farrow hopes that this is the evidence he needs to convince his bosses to proceed with the investigation. They shoot an interview in which Nestor’s face is hidden in shadows. She explains how Weinstein assaulted her in an incident in a hotel room which mirrors the numerous stories told by other women. She describes how Weinstein abused her as he demanded certain news stories about the movie industry to be spun in his favor. Her complaints were futile, and the experience traumatized her. She switched to an entirely different industry.

More and more former Weinstein employees come forward. Women explain to Farrow how Weinstein stalked, abused, and harassed a litany of women using similar tactics. Aspiring actresses, models, and employees are all potential targets in Weinstein’s life. Farrow tries to relax, but his private life is swamped by the investigation. The time he spends with his boyfriend, for example, is interrupted by strange text messages. 

Harvey Weinstein continues to work with Black Cube. Among other things, he is charged $600,000 to “identify who stands behind the negative campaign” (77) against him. When Weinstein delays making the payment, his relationship with the surveillance firm becomes strained. He finally agrees to pay a reduced fee and retains Black Cube’s services with the demand that they get more aggressive.

Farrow and McHugh struggle to piece their investigation together. They fear another journalist might publish the story before them. Moreover, their bosses are still not committed to the story. As McGowan wavers in her commitment, Farrow meets with her to demonstrate their progress. McGowan admits that her complaints about Weinstein have cost her lucrative roles and work. She believes that she is being followed and worries about rumors she heard about the executives and powerful people at NBC. McGowan pledges her support to Farrow and his story. Farrow flies back to New York with the hope of finally convincing Oppenheim to move forward with the story. He and McHugh place their most important evidence in a safe deposit box in a bank. They include a note asking for all of the information to be published in the event that “anything happen” (79). 

Oppenheim quietly examines the materials Farrow and McHugh compiled on Weinstein. In a discussion over whether publishing the investigation will be “worth it” (80), Oppenheim says he does not know whether the story is newsworthy or whether the general public cares about Weinstein. Publishing the story will have huge legal ramifications. As Farrow leaves the meeting, he receives another barrage of messages and a picture of a gun. He reaches out to NBC about a security team to help with a possible stalker. Farrow grows more paranoid and struggles to sleep.

An exhausted Farrow and McHugh meet with the NBC legal team. Rich Greenberg listens to Gutierrez’s recording and gives the green light to proceed with interviews. Weinstein can sue if he wants, Greenberg says, as the recording alone would destroy his reputation. Farrow leaves the office feeling triumphant.

McGowan befriends a woman named Diana Filip. McGowan opens up about her experiences and her desire to publicize her accusations against Weinstein. Simultaneously, the information file on Farrow grows and is sent to Weinstein. Among the sources are double agents who have spoken to Farrow and then reported their conversation back to Weinstein. Farrow and McHugh continue to find sources who are willing to talk, and stories about Weinstein’s time in London are of particular interest. Meanwhile, the reports generated by Black Cube become increasingly detailed and urgent. The firm produces files on numerous people in Weinstein’s orbit that include information on how they can best be exploited, convinced, or compelled to assist Weinstein. Among the people receiving the reports is Seth Freedman. 

Farrow contacts Ken Auletta and is permitted to examine his old reporting notes. The story about London begins to become clear. In the 1990s, an assistant named Zelda Perkins spent years enduring Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment. When he could not abuse her directly, he used her to facilitate the abuse of other women. She would book hotel rooms and clean up after him. Perkins confronted Weinstein after he abused another woman. Perkins and the woman eventually resigned from Weinstein’s company and pursued legal action. Weinstein panicked and launched into a frenzied string of meetings with lawyers in advance of any lawsuit. Weinstein begged Perkins not to proceed. Eventually Perkins and her fellow survivor accepted a cash settlement in the form of a check signed by Weinstein’s brother Bob. Perkins also insisted that Weinstein adhere to new guidelines at work. The agreement she signed demanded that people be appointed to Weinstein’s company to handle sexual harassment allegations, that the company provide proof that Weinstein was seeking counseling, and that Weinstein would be fired if similar accusations were made in the next two years. Some of these demands were met while others were ignored. Eventually, Perkins gave up on pursuing the demands because she found herself exhausted.

Farrow has the outline of the story in Auletta’s notes and begins to fill in the blanks. He writes up a news story to be published and prepares the script for the television segment. The more reporters Farrow talks to, the more people agree that while this is a vital story, it is seemingly impossible to publish. Similar rumors circulate about other powerful men in the entertainment industry, including the executive who cancelled Rose McGowan’s lucrative deal. Every time anyone publishes a story about these powerful men, lawyers shut it down. Farrow convinces Auletta to record an interview. Auletta confirms the stories about Weinstein and says that, given the wealth of evidence Farrow has amassed, any failure to publish the story will be a scandal.” Meanwhile, Diana Filip asks Rose McGowan to introduce her to Farrow. 

The script for the story’s television segment is described as “spare and economical” (89). It includes the recording of Weinstein as well as numerous interviews with survivors of Weinstein’s sexual abuse. Concurrent to the story is an investigation into Harvey Weinstein’s role on the board of the Foundation for AIDS Research and the misuse of charity funds. McHugh uncovers this element of the story, and Farrow advises him to quietly pursue it. Both men expect attacks when they publish the story. The script passes the first review by NBC’s legal team and is then moved to Noah Oppenheim’s desk before they seek out comments from the story’s subjects such as Weinstein.

They meet with Oppenheim. He is awkward and non-committal at first. Even after hearing the recording of Weinstein assaulting Gutierrez he struggles to offer any approval. He insists on raising the issue to Andy Lack before anyone reaches out to Weinstein for comment. Farrow and McHugh are stunned.

The private investigator Igor Ostrovskiy spends months trailing people as part of a mysterious case. He spends an increasing amount of time spying on reporters. 

Farrow arranges to meet Rose McGowan. She seems stressed and nervous when he arrives at her rental apartment. Although McGowan does not trust NBC, she reluctantly agrees to shoot another more expansive interview. Later Farrow receives a call from Rich Greenberg in which he learns that the story is now under legal review by NBC. The story has moved above and beyond the news department. Greenberg seems awkward and desperate to avoid confrontation with his bosses but is intrigued by Ken Auletta’s comment that suppressing the story would be a scandal. He asks for the transcript.

McHugh and Farrow debate their next move. They decide to move forward with the McGowan interview against the advice of the legal department and to contact any executives they can about the issue. Later, Farrow receives a call from Oppenheim. After an awkward conversation, Oppenheim worries that Farrow is threatening to go public with the story if NBC decides not to proceed. Oppenheim asks Farrow to trust him while the story is paused. 

Farrow and McHugh reschedule the interview with Rose McGowan. Later, Rich Greenberg reveals that Harvey Weinstein contacted NBC and issued legal threats, but Farrow insists that his reporting is beyond reproach. Yet by the time Farrow receives the go-ahead from NBC, McGowan backs out of the interview. She refuses to take part as she fears legal action. Farrow tries to find a new angle for the story, but the investigation is still paused by NBC and he is not allowed to conduct any new reporting. That night, Farrow allows himself to relax with friends for the first time in months. Meanwhile, Igor Ostrovskiy sits in his car and watches Farrow’s house. Farrow receives an invite to an event about gender equality from Diana Filip. 

Kim Harris, one of NBC’s lawyers meets with Farrow, Rich Greenberg, and NBC News general counsel Susan Weiner. Harris explains that she is worried that the story makes them open to a “tortious interference argument” (100), which means that could be sued for encouraging people to breach legal contracts. She explains her concerns but encourages Farrow to pursue the story with a few edits. Later he receives a phone call from an employee of Hillary Clinton. Clinton had agreed to talk to Farrow for a book project, but the employee tells him that the story about Weinstein is a “concern” (101) and that their planned conversation is put on hold. Farrow worries that his desire to report the Weinstein case is negatively impacting his career. Even his relationship with Rich McHugh grows strained as their conversations become terse. They continue to try and secure new interviews but they keep this work hidden from their bosses.

Farrow arrives home one day and his superintendent tells him about some men sitting in a car watching the building. Later, Farrow spots a large silver car with the men sitting inside. That same day, he receives a call from Greenberg who tells him to pause reporting again. He does not give a reason.

Farrow contacts Ally Canosa who worked for Weinstein for many years. She claims to have been repeatedly sexually abused by him and is open to discuss the case on camera. McHugh encourages Farrow to fly to Los Angeles to meet her, despite Greenberg’s order to pause his reporting. As he prepares to leave the next morning, Greenberg calls him. Together with Susan Weiner they try to convince Farrow to cease all contact with sources. He argues back and receives unsatisfactory, stilted answers. By the time the call ends, he feels disorientated and confused.

Farrow flies to Los Angeles. During the flight, he puts the finishing touches to the revised script and includes a note mentioning Canosa as a potential new witness. While the plane flies to Los Angeles, a story breaks about a Fox News host sending sexually inappropriate messages to women. In addition, The Hollywood Reporter releases a story announcing that Harvey Weinstein will receive a Truthteller Award from the LA Press Club for his “contributions to public discourse and the cultural enlightenment of society” (107). 

In Los Angeles, Farrow meets Ally Canosa who worries about her future. She signed an NDA and wants to work in Hollywood. Coming forward about her experiences with Harvey Weinstein could ruin her financially and professionally. She also is hesitant to revisit such traumatic memories. Her experiences with Weinstein followed a common pattern. Weinstein became interested in her, pursued her until she agreed to meet, and then switched the location of their meeting to his hotel room at the last minute. He promised her a career and then made sexual advances which were refused. He insisted they meet again and then forcibly kissed her while dangling career prospects before her. Weinstein offered to produce a movie based on one of Canosa’s ideas. One day, he insisted that she take a shower with him. When she refused, he began to masturbate in her presence. This pattern of abusive behavior continued for years. Even though they developed a functional working relationship, he eventually raped her in a hotel room. Canosa was traumatized but continued to work for Weinstein. By the time she finishes her story, Farrow believes that she is close to agreeing to go on camera. 

Former New York governor George Pataki calls Harvey Weinstein the to tell him that Farrow is still working on the story. Weinstein insists that he heard differently, but Pataki assures him that the segment could air in a matter of weeks. For years, Weinstein donated to many politicians’ election campaigns, and therefore he has friends in many public offices. Weinstein applies pressure again, focusing especially on Noah Oppenheim and MSNBC President Phil Griffin.

Griffin has his own history of sexually inappropriate behavior in the workplace. One time he insisted on taking female colleagues to a sexually explicit peep show. He is known for his crass and lewd comments.

Weinstein speaks to Griffin who insists that Farrow is “not running it with us” (114). Weinstein seems satisfied and his mood becomes triumphal once more.

After a period in which NBC seems increasingly willing to move forward with the story, Farrow is disappointed to learn that he must get approval from Noah Oppenheim and Andy Lack. He considers taking the story to another outlet but wants to move forward at NBC out of loyalty to McHugh.

In a meeting with Oppenheim, Farrow defends his work on the Weinstein case, but Oppenheim remains reluctant to move forward with the story. The situation reminds Farrow of an incident years before. Oppenheim spent much of his time as a journalism student writing damning profiles of college feminist groups. Later at NBC, he confessed to Farrow his reluctance to publish stories about sexual harassment. Although Farrow believes Oppenheim has matured since then, he wonders if Oppenheim legitimately does not consider the Weinstein allegations to be a serious matter.

Oppenheim is frustrated and pale. He eventually reveals a newspaper article which links Weinstein to Farrow’s father, Woody Allen. Weinstein claims this is a conflict of interest. Coupled with Farrow’s previous reporting on sexual harassment and abuse, Oppenheim suggests that Farrow might have an agenda or, at the very least, the public may view him in this manner. Farrow dismisses any such claim. Finally, he bluntly asks Oppenheim whether the story is dead. Oppenheim refuses to commit to publishing the story and suggests that Farrow take it to another news outlet. Farrow walks angrily out of the office.