- The fashion label of Harvey Weinstein’s estranged wife is in jeopardy following accusations of sexual misconduct against Weinstein.
- Georgina Chapman is a co-founder of the fashion label Marchesa.
- Chapman’s career at Marchesa is tightly tied to her husband’s success. Stars of Weinstein-backed productions, including Renée Zellweger, Cate Blanchett, and Blake Lively, have worn Marchesa designs on the red carpet.
- Chapman and Marchesa kicked off an attempt at a comeback this month, with Scarlett Johansson wearing Marchesa to the Met Gala and Vogue publishing a sympathetic profile of the designer.
Less than a year after scandals engulfed Harvey Weinstein, his wife is preparing to reenter the spotlight with her high-profile fashion label.
Marchesa, a fashion label co-founded by Weinstein’s estranged wife, Georgina Chapman, has struggled in the wake of sexual-misconduct accusations against Weinstein. According to the New York Post, Marchesa pulled out of New York Fashion Week after Chapman was too afraid to go through with the scheduled February show.
Chapman, who co-founded the fashion label Marchesa, reportedly left Weinstein in October and is set to receive $15-$20 million in a divorce settlement that has yet to be filed in court.
Chapman's career as the co-founder of Marchesa is tightly tied to her husband's success. Stars of Weinstein-backed productions, including Renée Zellweger, Cate Blanchett, and Blake Lively, have worn Marchesa on the red carpet, and rumors have floated for years that Weinstein pushed actresses to wear the fashion brand. With the allegations of sexual misconduct against Weinstein, many are wondering whether Marchesa will disappear from the red carpet altogether.
"No star is ever going to want to wear the brand again," The Hollywood Reporter quoted an unnamed New York fashion publicist as saying in October, after Weinstein was ousted from The Weinstein Company, the studio he founded.
However, Scarlett Johansson proved the publicist wrong at this year's Met Gala. The actress wore a Marchesa gown to the event - the first time a "major celebrity" has worn Marchesa on the red carpet since the allegations against Weinstein broke.
Here's the story of how Chapman's Marchesa became a celebrity favorite - and how the label is trying to reclaim its place on the red carpet:
Georgina Chapman founded Marchesa with Keren Craig in 2004. The same year, Chapman, then a 28-year-old former model from England, began dating Harvey Weinstein.
Source: Jezebel
A 2007 Teen Vogue article — spotted by Jezebel — says Marchesa caught on with Hollywood starlets after Renée Zellweger wore a gown from the line to the premiere of "Bridget Jones's Diary." "Bridget Jones" was distributed by Miramax, which Weinstein founded, and Zellweger thanked Weinstein during her Oscar speech in 2004.
"Maybe I helped, but just very, very little, with Renée Zellweger," Weinstein told Vogue in 2013.
Source: Vogue
Marchesa quickly caught on in Hollywood, with stars like Diane Kruger and Cate Blanchett wearing Marchesa dresses on the red carpet.
Rumors circulated that many stars were wearing Marchesa as a favor to Weinstein.
"Competitors complain that Marchesa dresses are worn on the red carpet because the stars and their agents, managers, and lawyers need to please the powerful Weinstein, who, along with his brother, has just started his own film company," the Los Angeles Times said in 2006. "Say the word 'Marchesa' and publicists groan."
Source: Gawker
"Marchesa designer Georgina Chapman has declared that she wants everyone to be wearing her frocks to the Emmys this year," New York magazine's Daily Intelligencer blog said in 2007. "Don't worry, GC: We're sure Harvey Weinstein will make sure anyone with even the most remote silver-screen aspirations won't have any other choice."
Source: New York magazine
"Eager to help Chapman, Weinstein strongly suggested that the stars of his movies wear Marchesa gowns for big events," The New York Times said in a profile of the stylist Rachel Zoe in 2007. "'I also put the gowns on my girls,' Zoe said."
Source: The New York Times
Chapman had a stint as an actress, appearing in "Factory Girl," "Derailed," "Grindhouse," and "The Nanny Diaries" — all films produced by Weinstein.
Source: Jezebel
Chapman's acting career was short-lived. However, her dresses continued to flood the red carpet and pop up on magazine covers.
It was rare for a red carpet not to feature at least one Marchesa gown.
Weinstein has long been friends with Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour. Both Weinstein and Chapman were front-row fashion-show fixtures.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
The Weinstein Company produces "Project Runway," which debuted in 2004. Chapman appeared as a judge on "Project Runway: All Stars" starting in 2012.
"They both benefited from the relationship, but she certainly knew about his bad behavior," a Los Angeles-based fashion publicist told The Hollywood Reporter.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Marchesa did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
In October, People reported that sources said Chapman was "really mad" but "not even really at Harvey," but on the impact on Marchesa.
Source: People
"My heart breaks for all the women who have suffered tremendous pain because of these unforgivable actions. I have chosen to leave my husband. Caring for my young children is my first priority and I ask the media for privacy at this time," Chapman said in a statement to People when the allegations against her husband surfaced in October.
Source: People
After months of silence from Marchesa and Chapman, Scarlett Johansson wore a Marchesa gown to the 2018 Met Gala earlier in May.
"I wore Marchesa because their clothes make women feel confident and beautiful, and it is my pleasure to support a brand created by two incredibly talented and important female designers," the actress said in a statement to Entertainment Tonight.
Source: Entertainment Tonight
Wintour spoke out on the choice, saying on The Colbert Show, "I think it was a great gesture of support on Scarlett's part to wear a dress like that — a beautiful dress like that — on such a public occasion."
Source: The New York Times
The public reemergence of Marchesa seems well-timed. The week of the Met Gala, Vogue published a sympathetic profile of Chapman.
Source: Vogue
"People don't feel sorry for us; you don't get that empathy," Huma Abedin, who is friends with Chapman, told Vogue. "People think you're beautiful, you're thin, you're rich, you're photographed on the red carpet, and you get stuck in this category. There’s so much more depth beyond all that with Georgina."
Source: Vogue
“Scarlett wearing the dress at the Met hopefully begins to move the brand away from an unfair exile,” Steven Kolb, the CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, told The New York Times. “It should have a voice and place in our industry.”
Source: The New York Times
Hollywood stylist Ilaria Urbinati posted an Instagram in support of Chapman after the Vogue piece was published, writing: "It feels hypocritical to have blamed, ostracized and shamed the female for the horrid acts of her male counterpart."
Source: Instagram
Other stylists, including Karla Welch and Samantha McMillen, offered their support for Chapman.
Source: Hollywood Reporter