Description
The Weinstein Company, LLC was an American independent film studio, founded in New York City by Bob and Harvey Weinstein on March 10, 2005.
TWC was one of the largest mini-major film studios in North America as well as in the United States. However, the firing of Harvey Weinstein following allegations of sexual harassment and rape against him, as well as financial troubles that followed, led to the company's decline. The studio eventually declared bankruptcy in February 2018, with independent studio Lantern Entertainment acquiring a majority of its film library and assets. Co-founder and chief executive Bob Weinstein previously owned a small stake in the company.
The company dismissed joint founder and chief executive Harvey Weinstein in October 2017, after over 100 women came forward to accuse him of sexual harassment, abuse, assault, and rape.
On February 26, 2018, The Weinstein Company announced in a statement that it would declare bankruptcy following the collapse of a buyout deal with an investor group led by Maria Contreras-Sweet. However, the TWC board and the investor group confirmed on March 1, 2018, that they had reached a deal in which TWC would sell all of its assets for US$500 million. On March 6, 2018, the acquisition deal collapsed again after the studio had an extra debt of US$50 million revealed. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 19, 2018. On May 1, 2018, Lantern Capital emerged as the winner of the studio's bankruptcy auction.
