Harvey Weinstein: The accusers' stories

A string of actresses have come forward to accuse movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment or assault.

Together, the claims build up a picture of one of the most powerful men in the industry exerting pressure on younger women at the start of their careers, often in hotel rooms and offices.

The suggestions - spoken or unspoken - were that he could advance their careers if they went along with him. Or he could do serious damage to their dreams if they did not.

He has admitted his behaviour has "caused a lot of pain" but has described many of the allegations against him as "patently false".

His spokesperson has said "any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied" and there were "never any acts of retaliation" against women who turned him down.

Here are some of those who have made allegations against him.

Gwyneth Paltrow

In a statement to the New York Times, Paltrow says after Weinstein cast her in the leading role of Jane Austen adaptation Emma in 1996, she was summoned to his hotel suite.

It was here that she says, as a 22-year-old, he placed his hands on her and suggested massages.

"I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified," she told the newspaper.

She said she told her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt about the incident, who then confronted the producer.

"I thought he [Weinstein] was going to fire me," she said.

Angelina Jolie

Jolie says she was propositioned by Weinstein in a hotel room during the release of Playing by Heart in 1998.

Jolie said in an email to the New York Times: "I had a bad experience with Harvey Weinstein in my youth, and as a result, chose never to work with him again and warn others when they did.

"This behaviour towards women in any field, any country is unacceptable."

Heather Graham

The Boogie Nights actress told Variety she was once propositioned by Weinstein in the early 2000s when she met him to discuss being cast in one of his movies.

She alleges he tried to force himself on her and told her his wife would have been fine with it.

"He could sleep with whomever he wanted when he was out of town. I walked out of the meeting feeling uneasy.

"There was no explicit mention that to star in one of those films I had to sleep with him, but the subtext was there."

Cara Delevingne

The British model and actress issued a statement in which she said Weinstein had made advances on her in a hotel room, in the presence of another woman, after they had discussed a film role.

She describes how uncomfortable she felt and describes what allegedly happened when she told him she wanted to leave: "He walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips. I stopped him and managed to get out of the room.

"I still got the part for the film and always thought that he gave it to me because of what happened. Since then I felt awful that I did the movie. I felt like I didn't deserve the part. I was so hesitant about speaking out. I didn't want to hurt his family."

Zoe Brock

Model and actress Zoe Brock says she was brought back to Weinstein's hotel room under false pretences in the south of France in 1997.

He emerged naked from another part of the suite and asked for a massage, she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"I did not want to do that and he asked if he could give me a massage... I didn't know what to do and I felt that letting him maybe touch me a little bit might placate him enough to get me out of there somehow."

Before long, she "bolted" into the bathroom. He banged on the door with his fists before eventually retreating, putting on a dressing gown and starting to cry.

Asia Argento

Italian actress and director Asia Argento's first dealing with Weinstein's company Miramax was when she appeared in their crime drama B Monkey.

She says she was left alone with him in a hotel room on the French Riviera after being told she was going to a Miramax party.

Argento says she reluctantly agreed to give him a massage, but he then raped her.

Weinstein "terrified me, and he was so big", she said. "It wouldn't stop. It was a nightmare."

"I know he has crushed a lot of people before. That's why this story - in my case, it's 20 years old, some of them are old - has never come out."

Argento has not spoken out until now, saying she feared it would ruin her career to do so.

Lucia Stoller

Stoller, now called Lucia Evans, encountered Weinstein in 2004 in a New York club when she was an aspiring actress.

She claims she was forced into a sexual act by the producer after going to his office for a casting meeting.

"The type of control he exerted, it was very real," she told The New Yorker. "Even just his presence was intimidating."

Mira Sorvino

Mira Sorvino appeared in several of Weinstein's films and told The New Yorker he sexually harassed her and tried to pressure her into having a physical relationship.

She was in a hotel room with him at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1995 while promoting Mighty Aphrodite, which she later won an Oscar for.

"He started massaging my shoulders, which made me very uncomfortable, and then tried to get more physical, sort of chasing me around."

Weeks later, she alleges he turned up to her apartment under the guise of having marketing ideas for the film.

"I opened the door terrified, brandishing my twenty-pound Chihuahua mix in front of me, as though that would do any good."

She told Weinstein her new boyfriend was on the way round, after which he apparently became dejected and left.

Louisette Geiss

The actress and producer came forward on Tuesday to say she was attacked by Weinstein at the Sundance Film Festival in 2008.

He invited her to his office in a hotel for a meeting about a script she had written.

Half an hour into the meeting, he went to the bathroom and emerged wearing only a robe that was open at the front.

She claims he insisted on continuing to listen to her pitch in his hot tub, then asked her to watch him masturbate. When she told him she was leaving, he grabbed her arm, pulled her into the bathroom and told her he could green-light her script - if she watched him.

"I was on the verge of tears but I pulled it together and quickly exited," she said.

Weinstein's spokeswoman Sallie Hofmeister issued a statement on Tuesday in response to the allegations of sexual harassment and assault.

"Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr Weinstein," she said. "Mr Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances.

"Mr Weinstein obviously can't speak to anonymous allegations, but with respect to any women who have made allegations on the record, Mr Weinstein believes that all of these relationships were consensual. Mr Weinstein has begun counselling, has listened to the community and is pursuing a better path."