The bold and emotional true story of the survivors who spoke out against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was always the stuff of great cinema.
On Wednesday, CInemaCon got a look at that movie: Universal’s “She Said.”
The film is a dramatic adaptation of the book by Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor, the reporting duo whose Weinstein exposé in the New York Times “created a domino effect and accelerated the #MeToo movement,” said star Carey Mulligan on stage at the annual convention of movie theater owners.
Mulligan and Zoe Kazan portray Twohey and Kantor, respectively. The trailer features supporting players including Patricia Clarkson and Samantha Morton. We meet Kazan’s Kantor on a mission to evaluate sexual harassment across business sectors — who soon discovers that show business is rampant with misconduct and criminal assault.
Pairing with Twohey, the women must use all of their reporting muscle and knowhow to convince traumatized women across multiple generations to do the impossible — speak on the record, and expose the “systems that protect abusers,” as Kazan’s character puts it. The footage included a glimpse of Kazan confronting a chief financial officer working for Weinstein (presumably at his eponymous production company) in front of his wife, asking him about payouts that prevented many of Weinstein’s victims from coming forward.
Another character, a fictional version of one of the many actresses who were assaulted during what they believed were business meetings, says in the film: “I’ve been waiting for this for 25 years. I can’t believe you found me.”
Weinstein was eventually sentenced to 23 years in prison on charges of sexual assault and third-degree rape.
Maria Schrader, whose credits include the Netflix limited series “Unorthodox,” directed the movie. Rebecca Lenkiewicz (“Ida,” “Colette”) adapted the screenplay. The film is slated to hit theaters on November 18.