Weinstein Books is kaput in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment scandal.
A memo sent out to publishing pros on Thursday by Weinstein Books publishing director Georgina Levitt and editorial director Amanda Murray, and obtained by Page Six, says, “We are pleased to share that all books and authors under the Weinstein Books imprint, as well as Amanda and myself, will have a new home at Hachette Books, an imprint at the Hachette Book Group, effective immediately.”
The email adds, “Hachette Books is thrilled to have us join their publishing list and team. As ever, supporting our authors and publishing their books to the highest possible standard is our top priority.”
Murray and Levitt took the helm at Weinstein Books back in 2012. One of the unit’s authors — “Last Comic Standing” winner Iliza Shlesinger — has a book due from the unit next month, “Girl Logic,” and she slammed Weinstein’s alleged acts of sexual assault and harassment as “deplorable” and “sickening.” But she added in a Twitter post that she’d never met Weinstein, and that her book “celebrates women, feminism, and our right to be bold.”
Harvey and Bob Weinstein’s books division had been through a number of iterations over the years after first beginning in 2001 as Miramax Books. It most recently published about 10 titles annually through a partnership with Hachette’s Perseus Books.