Who is Jessica Mann? Ex-actress recalls being raped by Harvey Weinstein, ‘The moment where I just gave up'
Former actress Jessica Mann recently appeared on the witness stand, describing how Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein allegedly raped her in a 2013 Midtown hotel room. Mann, now 38, wept while recalling the alleged assault at the DoubleTree Hotel in Midtown on March 18, 2013. She alleged that Weinstein trapped her in a room, injected himself with something that treats erectile dysfunction, and then raped her.
Mann was born in October 1985. She is an actress best known for This Isn't Funny (2015), Asylum: Twisted Horror and Fantasy Tales (2020) and Cavemen (2013).
Mann happens to be the third and final accuser to testify in the retrial. Former teen model Kaja Sokola and former production assistant Miriam 'Mimi' Haley previously took the stand.
"This is about the moment where I just gave up," Mann said, recalling how Weinstein blocked the door and asked her to undress, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Mann said she found a needle in the trash after the incident, with a word resembling "necro-something." "I found on Google that it basically meant 'dead penis,'" she told the jury, claiming the medicine can be used only a limited number of times. "I was freaked out. Did I get exposed to something? It was scary."
However, despite the encounter, Mann said she continued to have a complex relationship with Weinstein. "I just decided to have a relationship with him. I'm sorry if that's a bad decision. I just did. I also just wanted to buy time because I really didn't know how to handle it," she said.
Describing Weinstein as "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde,' Mann said, "Sometimes he validated me so much... but the word 'No' was like a trigger to him. This other personality, I called it 'The Monster side', would come out.'
Mann alleged that even before this encounter, Weinstein previously forced himself on her, performing unwanted oral sex on her during their first private meeting in Los Angeles. She said she did not speak out about the alleged abuse because of how powerful Weinstein was, having connections even with former US President Bill Clinton. "I remember imagining if I ever said anything, he would call his friend and the Secret Service would come get me," she said, according to the New York Post.
If convicted on the most serious rape charge according to Mann's account, Weinstein faces up to 25 years behind bars. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
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