On 23 April 2025, prolific abuser Harvey Weinstein began his New York retrial for rape. The disgraced Hollywood producer is being prosecuted (again) on charges of rape and sexual assault, for which he was found guilty and sentenced to 23 years in prison back in 2020. The retrial was agreed upon after the New York court of appeals found the 73-year-old did not get a fair trial because some of the women who were allowed to testify were not a part of the charges. This retrial marks the beginning of a deeply sour societal regression in the US, one that’s emboldened critics of the #MeToo movement to terrorise victims and use Weinstein’s now supposed innocence as a torch to burn down the incremental change that’s been made over the past few years.

As we’re all aware, Weinstein’s downfall sparked the beginning of a global reckoning. The #MeToo movement in 2017 and 2018 encouraged thousands of victims to come forward and share their stories of assault, rape, and injustice. Weinstein, sitting as the figure head of the entertainment industry and the assailant at the heart of so many women’s stories, was vilified. However, with the current political climate, and Donald Trump, a man found liable for sexual assault, sitting in the White House, the Weinstein retrial has emboldened misogynists and shone a light on how conservatives really view women in modern America.

In this article, we’ll dive into the retrial itself, netizens’ reactions online, and more specifically, how right-wing extremists and commentators have used the existence of these legal proceedings to proclaim Weinstein’s overt innocence and form cracks in the pushback against sexual predators in Hollywood.

As a quick disclaimer, I’d like to make it abundantly clear that I stand with Weinstein’s victims—and all survivors. This retrial doesn’t change the reality of his abuses, it only risks distorting the public memory of them. Moreover, I think we all need a reminder that proving sexual assault in a court of law (beyond a reasonable doubt) is incredibly difficult. Plus, the statute of limitation on crimes such as these plays a massive role in landmark cases such as this one. Okay, let’s continue.

@reuters

Harvey Weinstein’s retrial on rape and sexual assault charges got underway on April 23, as a prosecutor and a defense lawyer offered starkly contrasting explanations for the disgraced movie mogul's encounters with women who hoped to make it big in Hollywood. Prosecutors have portrayed Weinstein as a serial predator who promised career advancement to women, only to then coax them into hotel rooms and private apartments where he overpowered and attacked them. Weinstein's lawyer Arthur Aidala rejected that characterization, saying the Oscar-winning producer had "mutually beneficial" relationships with his accusers, who ended up with auditions and other show business opportunities. Lindsay Goldbrum, the lawyer of Kaja Sokola, who claims Weinstein assaulted her when she was a 16-year-old aspiring actress, accused the defense of "victim blaming." #weinstein #metoo #trial #court #hollywood #lawyer

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Harvey Weinstein will have a retrial because evidence given by other accusers meant he didn’t have a fair trial. Whilst white rich men use the courts to appeal and relitigate rape cases, survivors have no right to appeal. Where’s the fair trial for victims?

— Dr Charlotte Proudman (@DrProudman) April 26, 2024

Harvey Weinstein is back in court because his first two convictions were overturned in April 2024 and are now being retried. In 2020, the disgraced Hollywood producer was sentenced to 23 years in prison after being found guilty of sexually assaulting ex-production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 and raping former actor Jessica Mann in 2013. However, in April 2024, New York’s highest court overturned both convictions due to concerns the judge had made improper rulings, including allowing a woman to testify who was not part of the case, as reported by Sky News.

Interestingly, when the retrial was officially confirmed, the judge on the case also ruled that a separate charge concerning a third woman would be added to the docket. In September 2024, this unnamed woman filed allegations that Weinstein forced oral sex on her at a hotel in Manhattan in 2006.

Over the past five years, Candace Owens has collected a number of highly problematic and controversial friends. From Andrew Tate to Kanye West, the right-wing journalist has not only associated herself with these individuals, but publicly defended them. So, it’s not all that surprising that she would eventually join a growing list of public figures who are currently claiming that Harvey Weinstein was wrongfully convicted.

In a TikTok video posted on her channel on 27 April 2025, just a few days after the Weinstein retrial began, Owens said: “He was wrongfully convicted, is my conclusion. I’ve looked over this case and I’ve concluded that Harvey Weinstein was wrongfully convicted and was basically hung on the #MeToo thing.”

The creator then went on to present all of her ‘evidence’ to her guest and the audience. Owens began her argument by insinuating that so many of us are “impervious to the media” and then proceeded to speak incredibly disrespectfully about one of the victims’ stories, calling it “absurd.”

@candaceoshow

The media lied about the Harvey Weinstein case... #Candace

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The journalist also went on to say that the women who’ve accused Weinstein of sexual assault are trying to “rinse themselves of their sin.” Indeed, as far as Owens is concerned, these women were “sugar babies” who threw out accusations willy-nilly as soon as their professional prospects became stunted.

Unsurprisingly, there were a number of netizens in the video’s comments who were completely appalled by these statements. One user wrote: “Hey, so this is insane. Let’s believe the women Candice. Come on,” while another shared “Candace is just going for shock value for follows now. This is too much. Not following her anymore.”

Joe Rogan naturally also dipped his feet into the fire. During a podcast episode in March, Rogan said: “I can’t believe I’m on Harvey Weinstein’s side. I thought he was guilty of like heinous crimes and then you listen, and you’re like ‘Wait, what? What is going on?’”

it’s my fault for getting on the internet that i learned that joe rogan thinks harvey weinstein is innocent.

— chase 🇺🇦 (@chasel1994) May 6, 2025

And it’s not just Owens and Rogan who are suddenly second-guessing Weinstein’s guilt, it’s spreading like wildfire online.

Harvey Weinstein’s retrial has prompted a lot of discourse on social media. Ever since the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard case in 2023, there have been rumblings online—all of which point to an ever increasing opinion that women lie, and that men are being hunted and hung up to dry all in the name of feminism.

Netizens on X have begun referring to Weinstein as the #MeToo “fall guy” and debating the evidence, doing everything they can to poke holes in the victims’ testimonies and prove that this was no more than a media spectacle, and not a legitimate criminal investigation.

Harvey Weinstein was almost certainly innocent of the most serious charges, and in a less high profile case, he would likely have been acquitted.

Jurors dead locked initially.

Check the date.

2023.

I don’t care, he’s a shitlib, but he’s probably less guilty than you assume. https://t.co/IfERbjiLFV pic.twitter.com/A9ft3Dn6BL

— Cernovich (@Cernovich) March 14, 2025

I’ve finally been going over the reporting and I think Harvey Weinstein is like 75% innocent. A lot of the purported victims just seem like women who don’t want to admit they were willing to sleep with a monstrous freak to advance their careers

— dolo (@doloyeung) November 8, 2022

Harvey Weinstein is not guilty – previously he was convicted contrary to the evidence.
Now he’s ill & needs to win retrial to even survive…
Hope jury is clever & there are people who are not taking ongoing lies & machinations (from many sources) at face value. #HarveyWeinstein

— Agnes N (@agnes1_n) May 6, 2025

A Vox piece written by journalist Constance Grady summed up the current cultural swing we’re witnessing quite perfectly. In the article, Grady talks about how one of the greatest takeaways from the #MeToo movement was education. Yes, it encouraged a number of women to come forward with their stories, a truly invaluable feat, but it also sparked a global discussion about sexual assault, male power, and consent. These are conversations that had been shunned from public debate previously. It’s partially this source of knowledge that’s currently at risk of being buried online.

Grady concludes the article with an incredibly worrisome thought, one that needs serious and concentrated attention: “When Owens performs her ‘just asking questions’ routine about Weinstein, she is not asking new questions. She is asking very old ones and acting as though they weren’t thoroughly answered the first time around. That she has been able to do so successfully with Weinstein and find an audience willing and eager to welcome her takes means things could get a lot worse for all the other victims of sexual assault out there: the ones whose attackers don’t have 80 public accusations against them; whose attackers are, after all, no Weinstein. The informational ecosystem she is building is just one sign that the gains of Me Too are far more ephemeral than we had once hoped.”

The Weinstein retrial is expected to last up to six weeks and will likely continue to be at the centre of public discourse. What we can only hope is that, irrespective of its conclusion, this case won’t undo years of incredibly important work—spearheaded by incredibly brave women.