Harvey Weinstein statue, Casting Couch, launched ahead of the Oscars

Harvey Weinstein

Right before the 90th Academy Awards, a Harvey Weinstein statue, called Casting Couch, has appeared on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, drawing a lot of attention.

The golden statue depicts Weinstein sitting on a couch wearing a slightly opened bathrobe with an Oscar in his right hand. The figure is close to the Dolby Theatre, where the Academy Awards will take place today. Street artists Plastic Jesus and Joshua "Ginger" Monroe collaborated on the sculpture.

Visitors have been posing with the Weinstein statue, which is significant given how the producer has been shunned from the Hollywood community since reports of sexual harassment and abuse emerged last year. Dozens of women, including Salma Hayek, Lupita Nyong'o and Uma Thurman have been vocal about Weinstein's inappropriate behaviour towards them.

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