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How did this guy get away with disowning Weinstein?

posted 6 years ago by BrunoAntony (1198)
17 replies | jump to latest

Kevin Smith’s filmmaking career kicked off with 1994’s Clerks under Miramax where he also made Chasing Amy, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, and Jersey Girl. Then under the Weinstein Co. label, Smith made Clerks II and Zack and Miri Make a Porno. Bob and Harvey Weinstein were also behind the controversial Smith-directed Dogma, which Lionsgate wound up releasing as the controversial Catholic-themed film could not go through the Disney-owned Miramax pipeline at the time.

Smith worked palm-in-hand with Weinstein (alongside Tarantino, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, etc) during the prime Miramax years. All of those guys conceded that they'd heard stories about Weinstein and got raked across the coals by the media and court of public opinion for letting actresses be harassed and assaulted... but not Smith.

Smith never admitted that he knew Weinstein was sexually harassing actresses ... despite Smith's friendship with Affleck.

“He financed the first 14 years of my career — and now I know while I was profiting, others were in terrible pain. It makes me feel ashamed.”

“I know it’s not my fault, but I didn’t f*cking help. I sat out there talking about this man like he was a hero, like he was my friend, like he was my father and shit like that.”

Instead, Smith said he didn't know anything about it but he'd donate all the residuals going forward from his Miramax and Weinstein Co.-produced canon to the non-profit Women in Film (a strategy Affleck later copied).

Everyone gave Smith a pass (the guy is directing episodes of The CW's "Supergirl" ffs) ... why? For being a nerd?

There is something really untrustworthy and slimy about Kevin Smith.

[–] AP (5288) 6 years ago

Is he really that relevant anymore? He hosts comic con and stuff but the dude hasn't had a hit movie since Chasing Amy (and that one hasn't aged well).

[–] BrunoAntony (1198) 6 years ago

He still makes films, works in TV and has relevance as a spokesperson for "nerd culture" (or whatever) due to superhero films being so massive.

[–] AP (5288) 6 years ago

As I said, he hosts comic con and stuff, but I'm not sure he quite has the nerd cred he once did. It seems that young male nerds love him up until they get out of college (as I did). I have yet to see anyone that really loves the guy who is over the age of 25. It doesn't help that a lot of people are seeing him as a shill since he loves any and all comic or sci-fi thing that comes out (he gave Suicide Squad a positive review even though the entire video was about how his daughter is named Harley Quinn). As for films, as I said, he hasn't had a hit since Chasing Amy. His movies tend to flop and make little money at the box office. And sure, he directs episodes of Flash or Supergirl here and there, but that's not exactly an a-list position.

He's a c-lister so a lot of people don't care. He has his niche market and that's it.

[–] Burk48917 (11356) 4 years ago

Jay and Silent Bob strike back, Dogma and Clerk's 2 all made a lot of money. Much more than chasing Amy.

[–] AP (5288) 4 years ago

Critical and audience reception was higher for Chasing Amy. Also, did you adjust for inflation? Beyond that, let's say Clerks 2 was some massive hit for whatever reason. That movie came out in 2006.

[–] Burk48917 (11356) 4 years ago

Adjust for inflation? These movies were only years apart, not decades. Also, I'm replying to a comment about these being a hit, which is determined by the box office, not critical acclaim.

[–] AP (5288) 4 years ago

That's not how it's done (I'm still uncertain how much money Jay and Silent Bob or Clerks 2 made, but I'm sure they weren't blockbusters but whatever). Going by your logic, the Transformers movies were better movies than Citizen Kane.

[–] Burk48917 (11356) 4 years ago

Are you ignoring the words I'm writing, because you are countering points I never made? Do you need to be right so bad that you'll just create your own dialogue to counter? The Transformer movies are shit, but they were most definitely hits. I never used the term "better".

[–] AP (5288) 4 years ago

Well, your definition of a hit is different than my definition of a hit, then. Still, my initial point stands, Smith hasn't really been important in the industry since Chasing Amy.

[–] Burk48917 (11356) 4 years ago

My definition is different than yours, because it's the correct usage and you don't want to admit you were wrong. You can't just change the definition to suit your need. And again, I just named you 3 commercially successful films that are post chasing Amy, so twice you're wrong. It's not a big deal bro, sometimes people are mistaken, but it's when we double down despite the evidence that makes us look silly.

[–] GingerbreadPimp (1767) 4 years ago

He got woke and gets a pass now.

[–] Drooch (5333) 4 years ago

What’s there to ‘get away’ with? Smith didn’t do anything wrong.

[–] acidraindrop (3055) 3 years ago

OP asks "How did this guy get away with disowning Weinstein?"

Proceeds to explain exactly why he was given a pass: ignorance + innocence + apology + reparations

[–] moviechatterer (15583) 3 years ago

Instead, Smith said he didn't know anything about it but he'd donate all the residuals going forward from his Miramax and Weinstein Co.-produced canon to the non-profit Women in Film (a strategy Affleck later copied).

all the royalties from about 10 films in perpetuity
Thats quite a donation!

[–] davodikum (6197) 3 years ago

People aren't who their friends are. And also, people who don't throw friends under the bus are good, even if said friend is a cunt. If my best mate was a murderer, I wouldn't tell anyone or call the cops.

[–] peter_t_2k3 (1050) 3 years ago

But then that is the problem.

If I knew someone was abusing people I wouldn't want to let it happen. Ignoring the problem is just as bad as being a part of it

[–] AzureSeb (506) 3 years ago

The same way Gwyneth Paltrow and Meryl Streep did.