Weinstein Only Person Ever Banned, and Not for What You Think

Long before his criminal downfall, Harvey Weinstein’s bad behavior got him blacklisted from Hollywood’s most exclusive afterparty.

A Hollywood Power Player Pushed Too Far

Harvey Weinstein was one considered one of the most influential producers in Hollywood. But even at the height of his fame, he managed to get himself permanently banned from the most elite Oscars^® afterparty: the Vanity Fair Oscar Party.

According to Graydon Carter, former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair, Weinstein was the only person ever banned for life from the event. Carter shared the story in his memoir “When the Going Was Good,” revealing that the ban happened years before Weinstein’s public disgrace.

Harvey Weinstein in Paris at the César Awards ceremony, February 2014. Photo courtesy of Georges Biard under CC BY_SA 3.0.

Rude Behavior Was the Breaking Point

Carter described a pattern of bad behavior that led to Weinstein’s permanent removal. Weinstein “regularly showed up with more guests than his invitation indicated and would bully the staff,” Carter wrote in his memoir, as reported by Page Six.

At first, Carter warned him. But things escalated after Weinstein “lashed out at” Sara Marks, the party’s lead organizer, according to PEOPLE. That’s when Carter decided enough was enough. “He got banned from everything because he was rude to the staff and I didn’t like that,” Carter told Page Six.

Though Weinstein was a major Hollywood figure at the time, Carter didn’t let that stop him. “It was both the correct thing to do and a foolish gesture, in that he was certifiably the reigning producer in Hollywood at the time and he could tell the stars in his films to give us a wide berth on Oscar night,” Carter wrote, according to PEOPLE.

The Vanity Fair Oscar Party Was an Exclusive Institution

The Vanity Fair Oscar Party, created in 1994 by Carter and his team, quickly became one of the most sought-after invites in Hollywood. Inspired by legendary power agent Swifty Lazar’s famous parties, Carter pulled the first one together just three months after Lazar died.

Graydon Carter, editor of Vanity Fair, co-founder of Spy magazine. Photo courtesy of Mark Seliger under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Carter recalled the early days in an interview with PBS News Hour, saying, “We scrambled to pull it together. And we had, like, 150 people for dinner and maybe 150 or 200 people from the Academy Awards afterwards,” as reported by USA TODAY. What began as a small gathering quickly became a staple of Oscar night.

Weinstein’s Legacy Now Defined by Scandal

While being banned from a party might have seemed like a minor issue at the time, it foreshadowed larger problems ahead. Weinstein is now serving a prison sentence for his 2022 conviction on sex crimes charges in California. He was also convicted in New York in 2020, though that decision was overturned in April 2024.

Once a regular at the center of Hollywood’s biggest night, Weinstein is now known more for criminal trials than red carpets. His ban from the Vanity Fair party was the first public sign that not everyone in the industry was willing to overlook his behavior.

References: Harvey Weinstein Was ‘Banned’ for Life from Vanity Fair Oscars Party Before His Downfall for This Reason | Graydon Carter memoir revelations: Harvey Weinstein banned for life from Oscars party | Graydon Carter reflects on the golden age of magazines in ‘When the Going Was Good’ | Ex-Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter disses Oscars and dishes on Tom Cruise, Princess Diana and Meghan Markle: ‘Adrift on reality'