Back in the walk-up to his gig hosting the Oscars in 2013, Seth MacFarlane made a joke on live TV about Harvey Weinstein — and actresses who “pretend to be attracted” to the indie mogul.
The morning of the Academy Award nominations, MacFarlane and Emma Stone announced the nominees for Best Supporting Actress — which that year were Sally Field, Anne Hathaway, Jacki Weaver, Helen Hunt and Amy Adams
And that’s when MacFarlane tossed off a joke: “Congratulations, you five ladies no longer have to pretend to be attracted to Harvey Weinstein.”
The audience broke out in laughter — which would be bittersweet today following multiple allegations of Weinstein’s sexual misconduct that led to his firing from The Weinstein Company on Sunday.
At the time, Us Weekly asked MacFarlane whether he had run the joke by Weinstein before he delivered it on live television.
“No,” MacFarlane said. “We just figured let’s throw everything at the wall and see who gets mad.
Last Thursday, the New York Times published an article about Weinstein, detailing three decades of alleged sexual misconduct, including accusations that he propositioned actresses and harassed female employees.
Just days after its publication, Weinstein was terminated as co-chairman of The Weinstein Company, which he founded 12 years ago with his brother, Bob.
Since then, a New Yorker piece was published with more accusers coming forward. Weinstein’s BAFTA membership has since been revoked, and the company is currently under the leadership of his brother, Bob Weinstein, and COO David Glasser.
Watch the video above.