LOS ANGELES (CNS/FOX 11) - Film producer Harvey Weinstein was believed to be heading overseas today for sex-addiction therapy in the wake of mounting sexual harassment and assault allegations against him, but he expressed hope that he
will get "better" and be able to repair his fractured marriage.
On Tuesday, Weinstein's wife of 10 years, fashion designer Georgina Chapman, announced she was leaving the movie mogul over revelations about his alleged harassment of starlets and others dating back decades. Weinstein said he understands his wife's decision.
"Over the last week, there has been a lot of pain for my family that I take responsibility for," Weinstein said in a statement released by his Los Angeles-based publicist. "I sat down with my wife Georgina, who I love more than anything, and we discussed what was best for our family. We discussed the possibility of a separation and I encouraged her to do what was in her heart.
"In the end, she made the decision to separate. I understand, I love her and I love our children and hopefully, when I am better, I will be in their lives again. I support her decision, I am in counseling and perhaps, when I am better, we can rebuild."
Chapman, 41, and Weinstein, 65, were married in 2007 and have two children -- India Pearl, 7, and Dashiell, 4.
Weinstein has three other children from a previous marriage.
Chapman, a Marchesa designer, issued a statement to People magazine Tuesday saying, "My heart breaks for all the women who have suffered tremendous pain because of these unforgivable actions. I have chosen to leave my husband. Caring for my young children is my first priority and I ask the media for privacy at this time."
Various media outlets, including the website TMZ, reported that Weinstein was set to fly to Europe as early as Tuesday night to seek counseling. However, TheBlast.com and TMZ later reported that Weinstein was still in Los Angeles Wednesday morning.
TMZ captured video of Weinstein leaving the Los Angeles home of his 22-year-old daughter, Remy, after the pair apparently got into a Wednesday morning argument that prompted a response from the Los Angeles Police Department.
Citing law enforcement sources, TMZ reported that Weinstein's daughter called police and said her father was "suicidal and depressed," but Weinstein was gone before officers arrived around 10:30 a.m.
TheBlast and TMZ both reported that Weinstein was still expected to fly out of Los Angeles, possibly bound for Europe, to check in to a treatment center.
The furor over Weinstein's alleged actions, first outlined in a New York Times story last week, intensified Tuesday with a New Yorker article that outlined three women's claims that the film producer sexually assaulted them, and allegations from more women -- including actresses Mira Sorvino and Rosanna Arquette -- had been harassed.
On Wednesday, 25-year-old British actress Cara Delevingne -- who has appeared in films including "Suicide Squad," "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" and the Weinstein-co-produced "Tulip Fever" -- added her name to the list of Weinstein accusers.
Delevingne, in a lengthy Instagram post, said she once received a call from Weinstein asking her if she had slept with other women, and telling her being openly gay would threaten her ability to work as an actress. She said she met with him about a movie a year or two later.
"As soon as we were along he began to brag about all the actresses he had slept with and how he had made their careers and spoke about other inappropriate things of a sexual nature," she said. "He then invited me to his room."
She said she declined and tried to leave but was told her car wasn't immediately available. She wound up going to Weinstein's room, and was initially relieved to see another woman there.
"He asked us to kiss and she began some sort of advances upon his direction," she said. "I quickly got up and asked him if he knew that I could sing."
She said she began singing in hopes of making the situation more like an audition, then said she needed to leave.
"He walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips," she said. "I stopped him and managed to get out of the room. I still got the part for the film and always thought that he gave it to me because of what happened. Since then I felt awful that I did the movie. I felt like I didn't deserve the part. I was so hesitant about speaking out, I didn't
want to hurt his family. I felt guilty as if I did something wrong. I was also terrified that this sort of thing had happened to so many women I know but no one had said anything because of fear."
The actress went on to encourage other women who have faced such treatment to come forward.
"In every industry and especially in Hollywood, men abuse their power using fear and get away with it," she said. "This must stop. The more we talk about it, the less power we give them. I urge you all to talk and to the people who defend these men, you are part of the problem."
Weinstein spokeswoman Sallie Hofmeister issued a statement to the New Yorker earlier this week in response to allegations of sexual assault against the producer.
"Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein," she said. "Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances. Mr. Weinstein obviously can't speak to anonymous allegations, but with respect to any women who have made allegations on the record, Mr. Weinstein believes that all of these relationships were consensual. Mr. Weinstein has begun counseling, has listened to the community and is pursuing a better path. Mr. Weinstein is
hoping that, if he makes enough progress, he will be given a second chance."
Weinstein was originally placed on indefinite leave by The Weinstein Company in response to the New York Times article. But the company's board announced Sunday it was firing him outright in response to "new information" that came out in the days since.
The company did not specify what the new information was. But over the weekend, new accusers emerged, including British writer Liza Campbell and television reporter Lauren Sivan, who both claimed to have experienced graphic encounters with Weinstein.