New Zealand-born model Zoe Brock has described her own alleged sexual assault by disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.
Born in Aotearoa, raised in Australia and now predominantly living in San Francisco, Brock has over 20 years experience working around the world under her belt; but an alleged experience with Weinstein when she was just a young model has haunted her.
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Weinstein has been forced out of The Weinstein Company after a slew of sexual harassment claims were made against the 65-year-old by a number of different women.
Brock spoke to RadioLIVE's drive show on Monday about how she was invited to a party of Weinstein's in Cannes by her modelling agent.
"It was supposed to be 'good for my career'. I realise now that was crap," she says.
"I was there as arm candy, as decoration."
She described how leaving the party, they all piled into cars and due to a shortage of seats and she ended up in a car with Weinstein, his assistant and a few friends.
"They said we were all going to meet up. But that was not the case."
Weinstein drove them to the luxury Hotel du Cap, about 30 minutes out of town, where he took them up to his suite. Brock was told her friends would be meeting them there.
"Slowly, one by one or two by two, his friends started to disappear," she says.
"That's when my alarm bells started to ring."
It being the '90s, she had no mobile phone, and she also little cash and no credit cards on her. By 1am, Brock says she was feeling "very stranded".
"I spoke to [Weinstein's] assistant and said 'where are my friends?' He said 'I'm going to go downstairs and check,' and he left me alone with Harvey.
"And that's when Harvey took his clothes off."
Brock said Weinstein requested a massage from the scared model, before turning and asking if he could massage her.
"I thought it was a good way to give him an inch, not a mile," she said.
"But as he started massaging my shoulders and down my back, I quickly felt very, very uncomfortable with it and I bolted for the bathroom."
She locked herself inside the bathroom, as Weinstein banged on the door and told her to come out. "I was yelling at him 'put your clothes on, you naughty boy', which seems bizarre in retrospect."
She says taking control of the situation meant Weinstein backed off, promising to put some clothes on and 'be good'.
"I came out and he was sitting on the bed crying," Brock said.
"He said 'you don't like me because I'm fat'... That was either a deep insight into his life and his insecurities and what his driving force is, or it was bullshit. I have no idea."
Weinstein ordered a car and said he'd allow her to go back to Cannes. Weinstein, his assistant and Brock all sat in the backseat, with Brock "staring forward, stony-faced".
"[Weinstein] then went on this bizarre little attempt to try and win me over, telling me 'he'd make me a star' - which I wasn't really interested in being.
"And he told me he'd be my 'Rock of Gibraltar', which seems very ironic given the situation."
She says she was then dropped back to the boat she was staying on with her agent.
"An hour later, a water taxi delivered 13 long-stemmed red roses to the boat with a thank you note."
While critics may question why so many women have emerged with their accusations now, Brock says it's because at the time, "this was no news to anybody, and nobody cared".
"I said a lot of things to a lot of people, [but] this man runs Hollywood. You've seen him at the Oscars - he wins everything. There are millions and millions at stake."
She says there "was absolutely no point" in going to the police.
"Everyone in Hollywood knew - everyone enabled this."
Brock says it's rewarding seeing Weinstein now go through the jury of the public.
"I love it when people get their comeuppance... he cannot and should not deny these stories.
"He should be made to look like the little prick that he is... We always need to stand up to bullies, and it's just a shame there's so many of them."
Newshub.
