The idea that men are “bosses” and women are “bossy” isn’t new, and the Weinstein issues kicked off the mentality inherent in men who lord their dominance over women. As seen with ‘90s darlings like Sciorra, Sorvino and Judd, it wasn’t anything felt by the audiences, but what wasn’t felt by them in regards to their superior, Weinstein. Weinstein worked as part of a continuum that is often at the core of the “difficult woman” paradigm. It wasn’t just Weinstein’s own anger at being rejected, but his application of a term stuffed with preconceived notions that he knew would have a desired result. Directors Peter Jackson and Terry Zwigoff stated they didn’t hire Judd and Sorvino for specific roles in their project, either as a direct result of hearing the actress was “a nightmare to work with” or through an unspoken directive that the actress wasn’t wanted. A hint of Judd’s alleged nightmarish personality was enough for Jackson to, without consulting her, move on and deny her the role. Jackson and Zwigoff were established directors, able to have their pick of stars for their projects, yet they deliberately avoided female stars who had the presumption of difficulty based on rumor justified by a male authority.
For Jackson, and other males with bargaining power in Hollywood, actresses tread a fine line in order to secure work, and the vague attributes associated with terms like “nightmare,” “hard to handle” and, of course, “difficult” are often worse because they are specious. Actress Linda Fiorentino had a promising career in the early-’90s with noirish features like "The Last Seduction." Her husky voice and dominating, manipulative characters inspired comparisons to tough dames of the ‘40s like Barbara Stanwyck, and might have contributed to the mentality that Fiorentino was similar to the women she played. Rumors cropped up that Fiorentino was hard to work with. She jumped to the big leagues with the 1997 sci-fi adventure "Men in Black." Though Fiorentino’s character was prepped to co-anchor the sequel alongside Will Smith, it was reported that Smith’s co-star, Tommy Lee Jones was returning for "Men in Black 2" under the direct stipulation that Fiorentino wasn’t invited back. The reason was left unclear but tabloids reported it was due to her tempestuous nature.
Stories like these followed Fiorentino to her next role in Kevin Smith’s 1999 religious comedy "Dogma." Tommy Lee Jones and "MiB" director Barry Sonnenfeld never outright discussed their issues with Fiorentino, but Smith was different. He was open in his dislike of the actress, stating he wished he’d gone with his original choice, actress Janeane Garofalo. Fiorentino, to her credit, has never given interviews confirming or denying any of the stories associated with her, leaving Smith’s story and others as de facto “proof.” Because Fiorentino’s rise parallels the proliferation of the internet, specific examples of Fiorentino’s “difficulty” remain undefined. This ambiguity, when coupled with Fiorentino’s removal from film in general, leave audiences to believe the truth is worse than what was publicly stated. Actresses like Fiorentino, whose rise and fall was captured before the 24/7 news cycle and the advent of social media, are often at a disadvantage in the moment, unable to tell their story for decades. Hence why several prominent actresses of the ‘90s—including many of Weinstein’s victims—are only now able to remove the label that once yoked them.
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