Cate Blanchett ‘quite distressed’ by lack of change post MeToo

Cate Blanchett says she has found the lack of change in Hollywood following the #MeToo movement “quite distressing”.

The two-time Oscar winner, 55, gave her backing to the now defunct Time’s Up initiative – which followed high-profile victims of sexual harassment sharing their stories in 2017 – and the wider push for eradicating sexual harassment.

Australian actress Blanchett told Net-a-Porter’s initial off-shoot Porter magazine: “Everyone talks about the #MeToo movement as if it’s well and truly over, and I think, well, it didn’t really ever take root, to be honest.

“People were seeking to dismantle and discredit those voices that were only just beginning to come out from under the floorboards into the light. I find it quite distressing the way that it hasn’t taken root.”

She also said that she is inspired by British rising stars, including Back To Black actress Marisa Abela, with whom she stars in the upcoming Steven Soderbergh spy film Black Bag, and The Crown star Emma Corrin, who will be opposite Blanchett in the upcoming London production The Seagull at the Barbican.

Blanchett said: “Their point of view on a scene will obviously be profoundly different to mine, or someone of my generation.

“I’m just amazed by, not only their aliveness of their point of view, but also their technical reserves in ways that I couldn’t have even imagined having or possessing when I was their age.”

In 2018, Blanchett spoke against Harvey Weinstein, who produced films of hers such as The Talented Mr Ripley, Carol and The Aviator.

She was asked about whether Weinstein was inappropriate towards her and replied saying: “With me, yes.”

She said: “I think he really primarily preyed, like most predators, on the vulnerable. I mean I got a bad feeling from him. He would often say to me, ‘We’re not friends’.”

Last year, a New York court overturned Weinstein’s 2020 conviction for rape. A retrial has been set for April.

Weinstein remains in prison after he was convicted of rape in Los Angeles in 2022. He was sentenced to 16 years.

His lawyers have also appealed against this conviction.

In 2018, the Time’s Up Foundation began, which provided legal defence for sexual violence victims in the wake of the #MeToo movement.

However, its co-founders resigned from their roles after they were found to have advised someone accused of sexual harassment allegations.

The foundation halted operations and funds were shifted to the Time’s Up Legal Defence Fund, which continues to operate and is administered by the National Women’s Law Centre.

Blanchett has won two Academy Awards, one for best actress for Woody Allen movie Blue Jasmine, and another for supporting actress for The Aviator.

She also received six nominations, most recently for playing a composer and conductor in 2022 movie Tar.