Hachette Book Group is reportedly terminating its publishing deal with The Weinstein Company in the wake of the growing list of allegations of sexual harassment and assault against disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.
The publishing company owned by France’s Hachette Livre told The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday that it is shutting down the Weinstein Books imprint effective immediately. “Going forward, titles currently under the Weinstein Books imprint will be published by our Hachette Books imprint, and the Weinstein Books imprint team will join Hachette Books,” the company told THR in a statement.
Coins2Day contacted Hatchette for confirmation and we will update this article with any response.
The THR report also notes that The Weinstein Company’s co-publishing deal with Hachette’s Perseus Books had been producing roughly 10 books per years. A website for Weinstein Books that lists books previously published by the imprint includes well-known titles such as the late-journalist Tim Russert’s best-selling 2004 memoirBig Russ & Me, as well as books by high-profile figures like former U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown, CNN host Larry King, and Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi.
MSNBC anchor Mika Brzezinski, who has a three-book deal with Weinstein Books, said this week that she is reconsidering whether or not she wants to go forward with that agreement in the wake of the allegations against Weinstein.
The Weinstein Company fired its co-founder over the weekend, and police in both London and New York City are reportedly investigating sexual assault allegations against the movie industry titan. On Tuesday, Weinstein’s spokesperson issued a statement in response to several of the allegations of sexual harassment and assault: “Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr Weinstein.”
Earlier this week, Hatchette said it would honor the contracts of all writers who came to the company through deals with Weinstein Books. Also this week, comedian Iliza Shlesinger, who wrote an upcoming book under the Weinstein Books imprint, wrote on Twitter to condemn Weinstein’s behavior while also noting that the publishing company is full of “women who have been supportive of me.”