--- title: Harvey Weinstein’s Ex-Assistant Zelda Perkins Breaks Silence description: Harvey Weinstein’s former assistant broke a confidentiality agreement to detail the last “distressing” two decades she spent in silence. canonical: https://time.com/5073458/zelda-perkins-harvey-weinstein/ author: Melissa Chan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-12-20T15:13:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T08:43:00.838Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Harvey Weinstein's Former Assistant Breaks Her Silence on 'Repulsive Monster' og:description: "I don't think he's a sex addict. He's a power addict" og:url: https://time.com/5073458/zelda-perkins-harvey-weinstein/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5924c4014b4debc3/6988f5e57cdbac72dcd5b5b7/zelda-perkins.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4475 og:image:height: 2517 og:image:alt: Women and Hollywood 10th Anniversary Awards Celebration - London og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Harvey Weinstein's Former Assistant Breaks Her Silence on 'Repulsive Monster' twitter:description: "I don't think he's a sex addict. He's a power addict" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5924c4014b4debc3/6988f5e57cdbac72dcd5b5b7/zelda-perkins.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Harvey Weinstein's Former Assistant Breaks Her Silence on 'Repulsive Monster' > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with Ally. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: TIME Person of the Year 2017: The Silence Breakers [Watch (HLS stream): TIME Person of the Year 2017: The Silence Breakers](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/jbtW5SvJ.m3u8) (5:02)  _Published 2017-12-06. For giving voice to open secrets, for moving whisper networks onto social networks, for pushing all of us to stop accepting the unacceptable, the Silence Breakers are the 2017 Person of the Year._  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Dec 20, 2017 3:13 PM UTC  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Dec 20, 2017 3:13 PM UTC [Harvey Weinstein](http://time.com/5052230/women-sue-harvey-weinstein/)’s former assistant broke a confidentiality agreement Tuesday to detail the last “distressing” two decades she spent in silence due to her former boss, who she called a “repulsive monster.” Zelda Perkins worked for the movie mogul’s Miramax Films in the 1990s but resigned after a colleague accused Weinstein of attempted rape — an allegation he has denied. In 1998, Perkins said she signed a non-disclosure agreement and was given about $168,000 in a settlement that prevented her from telling anybody about the alleged sexual assault. During a Tuesday [television interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4hhZTcTYeU&feature=youtu.be) with [BBC Newsnight](http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-42417655), her first since the settlement, Perkins finally spoke out on Weinstein’s “habit of behaving inappropriately,” his need to dominate and how she was traumatized after confronting him about the rape claim. “The last 20 years have been distressing, where I’ve not been allowed to speak, where I’ve not been allowed to be myself,” she said. “Although the process that I went through was legal, it was immoral.” > [](https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight/status/943250576279818240) In response to Perkins’ interview, Paul Tweed, one of Weinstein’s lawyers, said the embattled producer “categorically denies engaging in any non- consensual conduct or alleged threatening behaviour,” in a statement to TIME. Perkins painted her former boss as a “brilliant and stimulating person to be around,” but also a “master manipulator” with constant mood swings. “With Harvey, there was no such word as ‘no,’” she said. “I don’t think he’s a sex addict. He’s a power addict.” Perkins said one woman warned her about Weinstein’s behavior when she first took the job with him. The woman told Perkins not to sit on couches with him and to choose a single-seat armchair instead. Perkins said she later warned others about his behavior, though she said she thought they were safe because she never felt physically threatened by him. “I was wrong,” she told the BBC. Perkins said she pulled Weinstein out of an important business meeting after her colleague came forward to tell Perkins about how Weinstein tried to rape her. “She was shaking, very distressed, clearly in shock,” Perkins said. Perkins said Weinstein denied the incident at the time. Perkins quit and left the industry. She said her lawyers said she “didn’t have very many options” in terms of legal action, so she ended up agreeing to a settlement. Perkins said the experience left her “broken” and distressed until now, after choosing to speak out during an international movement in which dozens of women have come forward with their experiences of sexual harassment and assault. Dozens of women in Hollywood have accused Weinstein of sexual harassment, assault and rape after the New York Times published an explosive report in October about previously undisclosed allegations against him. Weinstein has denied “any allegations of non-consensual sex,” his spokesperson has said. It’s unclear what legal repercussions Perkins faces from breaking her confidentially agreement. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] We can't all be ****. We can't all be asking for it. I am here to give you permission to be angry. This reality might not have to be our reality anymore. I felt this crushing sense of powerlessness. This is the time to take my power back. Here's my story. Uber promises. Investigation into sexual harrassment. Fox News cutting its ties with Bill O'Reilley. I felt it was my duty for the women who are silent to be brave. It's okay to stand up for yourself. Taylor Swift appearing in court today. Harvey Weinstein, the New York- People forget a lot that there's a human behind this. Someone who was very hurt and wronged. [ MUSIC ] [ CROSSTALK ] I always thought maybe things could change for my daughter. I never thought things could change for me. [ MUSIC ] Honestly, I was furious. I have had a man grope me in front of multiple collegues and I was tired of wondering if it was something I wore, I was tired of wondering if it was a vibe I was giving off and when I talked to other women they were furious too >> I felt that if I can speak out, may be if I just stand up then someone else would stand up with me >> There wasn't a place For us to report these experiences. But I sure did talk about it a lot over the years. The least I could do was actually tell my own story and validate theirs for them in a way, just as I was hoping someone much bigger than me would help validate my story. And I knew that other women Would continue to apple for jobs there and that made me feel really uncomfortable. I was afraid of the retaliation, I know the power of patriarchy. I know what men can do when their angry. They did everything that they could to prevent me from raising my concerns further. They asked me if there were other girls, maybe that he has done this too and can I go get them. I had to show them that I wasn't lying And it's like they took me for a joke. And if they couldn't stop us from talking, well, they were gonna stop everybody from listening to us. People digging into my Instagram and pulling up sexy photos as if they kind of discredited me. Well, I've seen you in committee. You're really tough. Why didn't you just hit him? Why did you let it go on for so long? I was a smart young woman that had gone to college, that knew how to fight, and I still was manipulated and conned. I felt ashamed that I hadn't spoken out sooner, not having the strength earlier on to make it stop. The feeling of being humiliated as a woman And there's a point you think is it my fault? For so long I went around harboring this ridiculous belief that because I was a non white woman in my 20s, it was expected that I would have to be treated this way. We don't have to just live like this. Few things could change from my daughter I never thought things could change from me. I'm here to give you permission to be angry, people are afraid specially women where conditioned since birth to be polite. To be nice, to be kind, to be liked to not make waves. ****. We can't all be crazy, we can't all be ****, we can't all be asking for it. And I'm telling you that all the people who stand up, all the people who speak out you are teaching people how to treat and you should not be shamed for that. The shame is not ours to hold, the shame is on perpetrator. Me Too can be a conversation starter or it can be the whole conversation. It took away the power from the predator. And placed the power on the victim. And maybe, just maybe we would be able to get a glimpse at the magnitude of this problem. The amount of people sharing the stories with me is so intense. People that were complete strangers reached out to tell very personal stories. It's What they did with this and they did a lot and not only in France in Hong kong japanese. The most months >> I feel like the day that I spoke up and I said you are a sexual harasser I changed >> some of the. Things in the night. [ FOREIGN ]. It's an honor to be the person that hey I spoke up about this. I took on the risk. And I was very humbled and I was very proud. I'm very glad now that the story has been heard. It's a direct response to that arrogance and that show of power and [ UNKNOWN ]. A sense, we won't be silenced. [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5073458/zelda-perkins-harvey-weinstein/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5073458/zelda-perkins-harvey-weinstein/"},"headline":"Harvey Weinstein's Former Assistant Breaks Her Silence on 'Repulsive Monster'","datePublished":"2017-12-20T15:13:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T08:43:00.838Z","description":"\"I don't think he's a sex addict. 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