From TRD LA: Tom Barrack’s Colony Capital might just be the lifeboat for Harvey Weinstein’s sinking empire.
The multibillion-dollar investment firm, founded by Barrack, is in talks to potentially acquire Weinstein Co. after Weinstein was ousted amid a sea of allegations of sexual harassment and rape, Bloomberg reported.
Colony would give Weinstein Co. a much-needed cash infusion, and would potentially come to own the film and television studio, according to a Weinstein Co. statement released Monday.
“We believe that Colony’s investment and sponsorship will help stabilize the company’s current operations,” Weinstein board member Tarak Ben Ammar said in the statement.
Weinstein was fired from his own company on Oct. 8, just three days after the New York Times published an expose on the film mogul’s three-decades-long history of alleged sexual harassment. Other reports indicated the company’s board was aware of his behavior. He has since been expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In addition to founding Colony, Barrack — who was chairman of President Trump’s inaugural committee and is his longtime friend — made his fortune off deals with Middle Eastern millionaires and by flipping bad German loans. He’s saved struggling elites in the past — he once rescued Annie Leibovitz and Michael Jackson from financial troubles.
“We will help return the company to its rightful iconic position in the independent film and television industry,” Barrack said. [Bloomberg] – Natalie Hoberman