The actor Antonio Banderas recounted the details of his conversation with the Mexican interpreter, after she denounced the film producer, Harvey Weinstein.
Salma Hayek never told Antonio Banderas about the abuse Harvey Weinstein subjected her to during the filming of the movie "Frida".
When the actor heard the news, years after the filming of the tape, he picked up the phone and called her to ask why he never told her anything. The Mexican interpreter replied: "I was trying to protect myself."
Hayek was one of the victims of the film producer, who with her influence was capable of destroying a career in the Hollywood film industry.
"I have worked with Harvey Weinstein, he has produced films that I have been in, but he was not aware of that," said the Spanish actor in an interview with "AFP".
"When the matter of Salma came up, the first thing I did was call her, I asked her 'why didn't you tell me anything? She was trying to protect me, my friends, because I knew she was a very powerful character and if she told us something and we faced it, we would pay a very high price", said the Spanish actor.
"If she had been aware of such a bestiality, she would have talked about it," he added, who does not doubt the story of her friend.
Hayek described Weinstein as her "monster of hers" in an essay published in The New York Times, in which she detailed the torturous production of the film that earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.
They worked together on other films such as "The Ballad of the Gunslinger", "Desperado", "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" and "Puss in Boots".
The Weinstein scandal erupted last October, spilling over into other heavyweights in the entertainment industry and sparking movements like "#MeToo" and "Time's Up."
"I think it had to explode, it's something unacceptable in the world of cinema, banking, whatever, you can't do that," said Banderas, 57.
"That is indeed abusing people to a criminal point, those people should stand before a jury," the actor concluded.
Weinstein is facing a rape and assault case in a New York court. He pleaded not guilty and was released after posting $1 million bail.
