Three women have accused the "Cosmos" host, according to Patheos
Adam Salandra | November 30, 2018 @ 7:09 PM
Fox and National Geographic are investigating “Cosmos” host Neil deGrasse Tyson after three women accused the celebrity astrophysicist of sexual misconduct, including rape in one instance.
Tyson did not immediately respond to requests from TheWrap for comment Friday.
On Nov. 8, Patheos published an interview with Tchiya Amet, who says Tyson drugged and raped her in 1984 when they were both grad students. On Thursday, two more women came forward with accusations in Patheos: Dr. Katelyn N. Allers, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at Bucknell University who says she was “felt up” by Tyson at a party in 2009, and his former assistant Ashley Watson, who said she quit her job because of Tyson’s sexual advances.
“The credo at the heart of ‘Cosmos’ is to follow the evidence wherever it leads. The producers of ‘Cosmos’ can do no less in this situation. We are committed to a thorough investigation of this matter and to act accordingly as soon as it is concluded,” the producers of the series said in a statement.
“We have only just become aware of the recent allegations regarding Neil deGrasse Tyson. We take these matters very seriously and we are reviewing the recent reports,” Fox Broadcasting Company and National Geographic said in a statement.
A second iteration of “Cosmos” was set to premiere in early 2019.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
Harvey Weinstein was once the king of the indie film world. But the Oscar-winning producer's career and reputation have imploded since fall 2017, when scores of women stepped forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct. Here's a breakdown of what happened.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 5, 2017
The New York Times published a story revealing that Harvey Weinstein had paid financial settlements to at least eight women accusing him of sexual harassment or assault. Actress Ashley Judd is the only accuser to go on the record, accusing the mogul of assault in his hotel room. In a statement, Weinstein apologizes, vows to take a self-imposed leave of absence from his company and bizarrely declares war on the NRA.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 6, 2017
Senators Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and other politicians donate campaign contributions they received from Weinstein to charity.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 8, 2017
Weinstein is fired as CEO from The Weinstein Company.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 10, 2017
The New Yorker publishes its own piece, written by Ronan Farrow, in which three women, including Italian actress Asia Argento, accuse Weinstein of rape. Through a spokesperson, Weinstein denies any account of nonconsensual sex.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
Hours after the article runs, the New York Times publishes on-the-record accusations of inappropriate behavior from Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
Weinstein’s wife, fashion designer Georgina Chapman, announces their separation.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 11, 2017
BAFTA suspends Weinstein’s membership. AMPAS holds a special meeting to consider consequences for Weinstein’s “repugnant” actions.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 12, 2017
The NYPD and London’s Metro Police both launch criminal investigations of Weinstein. On social media, Rose McGowan accuses Weinstein of raping her. (He has consistently denied engaging in nonconsensual sex.)
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 13, 2017
Director Quentin Tarantino, arguably Weinstein’s greatest discovery, says he is “heartbroken” by the scandal. A petition to expel Weinstein from AMPAS passes 100,000 signatures.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 14, 2017
The AMPAS Board of Governors expels Weinstein. The Weinstein Company’s development slate falls apart, losing projects with David O. Russell and more. Release of Benedict Cumberbatch’s "The Current War" is delayed.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 15, 2017
Actress Alyssa Milano kicks off a cultural movement by encouraging women to share their stories of sexual harassment and assault on social media. She asks them to tag the stories #MeToo.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 16, 2017
The Producers Guild of America votes unanimously to terminate Weinstein’s membership.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 17, 2017
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy vows to start an industry-wide commission to create “protections against harassment and abuse.” Frequent Weinstein collaborator and filmmaker Kevin Smith vows to donate all of his Weinstein Company residuals to Women in Film.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
OCTOBER 25, 2017
The Taylor Sheridan film "Wind River," which had a successful release by the Weinstein Company in August, excises the Weinstein name from its home video and streaming releases. Principal financier Acadia Entertainment buys the film back from TWC and self-funds an awards campaign. (It doesn't land any Oscar nominations.)
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
NOVEMBER 6, 2017
The Television Academy bans Weinstein for life. The New Yorker runs a follow-up piece saying a battery of former Mossad agents and communications experts were used to silence stories of Weinstein’s impropriety for years.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
NOVEMBER 15, 2017
TWC is hit with a class-action lawsuit from several of Weinstein’s accusers. The company is forced to sell its live-action "Paddington 2" to Warner Bros. to help infuse the studio with cash and keep the doors open.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
DECEMBER 6, 2017
The Academy announces its “standards of conduct,” which read, in part, “The Academy is categorically opposed to any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, or nationality.”
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
JANUARY 1, 2018
#TimesUp is born as four female talent agents from CAA create a legal defense fund for women in the U.S. workforce to protect them from sexual harassment. The effort is announced and endorsed by contributors like Meryl Streep, Viola Davis, Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Fox Film head Stacey Snider, Fox TV honcho Dana Walden, Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey, among others.
JANUARY 7
To draw attention to the mistreatment of women in Hollywood, virtually all women attending the Golden Globes wear black.
JANUARY 8
Immediately after he wins a Golden Globe wearing a #TimesUp pin, James Franco is accused of sexual misconduct by several women. The accusations, which the actor denies, come in the middle of the Oscar nomination voting period.
JANUARY 9
Lady Bird writer-director Greta Gerwig joins Mira Sorvino, Chloe Sevigny and others in saying she would not work in the future with director Woody Allen, who had been accused of sexual assault by his adoptive daughter, Dylan Farrow. (He has repeatedly denied the accusation.)
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
JANUARY 10, 2018
Page Six reports that Weinstein and Chapman reached the terms of an eight-figure divorce settlement, with Chapman securing primary custody of the couple's two children.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
JANUARY 27, 2018
The Academy emails members to reveal the process by which violations of its code of conduct can be reported.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
FEBRUARY 6, 2018
“I may be a 75-year-old white male,” says Academy President John Bailey at the annual Oscar Nominees Luncheon, “but I’m as gratified as any of you that the fossilized bedrock of many of Hollywood’s worst abuses [is] being jackhammered into oblivion.” (One month later, the Academy would investigate -- and then dismiss -- accusations of sexual harassment against Bailey himself.)
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
FEBRUARY 8, 2018
Los Angeles police send three sexual assault cases concerning Weinstein to the city’s district attorney for possible charges.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
MARCH 19, 2018
The Weinstein Company filed for bankruptcy in Delaware, reporting that it had less than $500,000 in cash on hand. Dallas-based Lantern Capital Partners stepped up as a stalking horse bidder prepared to buy virtually all of the company’s assets for $310 million.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
MAY 8, 2018
Despite a last-minute bid from Broadway producer Howard Kagan’s Inclusion Media, a Delaware bankruptcy judge approves Lantern Capital's purchase of The Weinstein Company's assets.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
MAY 25, 2018
Following a months-long investigation by the NYPD, Weinstein is arrested on three felony charges of rape and criminal sex act in connection with two female accusers. Weinstein pleads not guilty and released on $1 million bail pending trial.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
MAY 30, 2018
Weinstein is indicted on charges of rape in the first and third degrees, as well as on charges of criminal sexual act in the first degree, as announced by the Manhattan district attorney’s office. Then on June 1, Three women filed additional charges against Weinstein in a class action lawsuit, saying that Weinstein isolated the women “in an attempt to engage in unwanted sexual conduct that took many forms: flashing, groping, fondling, harassing, battering, false imprisonment, sexual assault and attempted rape, and/or completed rape.”
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
JULY 2, 2018
A grand jury served Weinstein with three more sexual assault charges, an additional count of criminal sexual act in the first degree for forcing a woman to have sex with him in 2006, and two counts of predatory sexual assault. The latter charge carries a minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of a life sentence. Weinstein would plead not guilty.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
AUGUST 3, 2018
Weinstein made a push to have a New York judge toss out a criminal sexual assault case brought against him, saying in a filing that the Manhattan district attorney “failed to provide the Grand Jury with exculpatory evidence of the long-term, consensual, intimate relationship between Mr. Weinstein and the alleged rape victim.”
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
AUGUST 19, 2018
A report in the New York Times said Asia Argento paid a settlement of $380,000 to actor Jimmy Bennett after accusing her of sexually assaulting him when he was just 17. Argento denied the accusations. Rose McGowan distanced herself from Argento, and Weinstein issued a statement saying Argento displayed a “stunning level of hypocrisy.” “The sheer duplicity of her conduct is quite extraordinary and should demonstrate to everyone how poorly the allegations against Mr. Weinstein were actually vetted and accordingly, cause all of us to pause and allow due process to prevail, not condemnation by fundamental dishonesty,” the statement continued.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
AUGUST 30, 2018
Former NBC News producer Richard McHugh said that people at “the very highest levels of NBC” worked to quash Ronan Farrow’s Harvey Weinstein story that eventually published in The New Yorker. Then on Sept. 3, NBC News Chairman Andy Lack sent an internal memo saying that after eight months, Farrow's reporting “did not have a single victim or witness willing to go on the record.” Farrow disputed the memo and said NBC's list of sources was incomplete.
A blow-by-blow look at how the indie mogul’s career and reputation unraveled
SEPTEMBER 6, 2018
The U.S. Attorney’s office in New York opened an investigation into Weinstein’s involvement with the private spy firm Black Cube to see if he violated any federal wire fraud laws. Weinstein had hired Black Cube to gather information on those accusing him of sexual assault.