The Weinstein Company’s lone awards-season contender has axed its connection to the embattled studio. Wind River, written by Taylor Sheridan and starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen, will no longer feature any mention of Harvey Weinstein’s former company on its Netflix and DVD release, or its awards-season screeners, according to Deadline. Wind River was met with critical acclaim when it was released in August, and has grossed about $33 million to date, making it a successful summer prestige release. Now, in light of the dozens of sexual-misconduct allegations against Weinstein, the movie’s awards-season campaign will be funded entirely by Acacia Entertainment, a Tunica-Biloxi tribe–backed company. The filmmakers will not use money or resources from TWC, sources told Deadline. Sheridan, Olsen, Renner, and producer Basil Iwanyk reportedly lobbied that the Weinstein Company’s name be removed from the movie, which deals with the an investigation into sexual assaults on Native American women. Wind River won the Un Certain Regard for Best Director award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Update: Two other Weinstein Company releases — Leap and (the very sexy) Tulip Fever — will also remove the company’s name from their home-video releases, and no longer credit Harvey Weinstein as an executive producer. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the filmmakers don’t want to be associated with Weinstein’s ongoing sexual-assault scandal. Sources told THR that other movies might scrub TWC’s logo, depending on the company’s future.
