Marchesa survives #MeToo scandal: Weinstein's wife's fashion comeback

Marchesa, the luxury fashion brand damned by its association to disgraced Hollywood producer, Harvey Weinstein, is officially on the path to public redemption.

Many fashionistas boycotted Marchesa, co-founded by Weinstein’s now-estranged wife, Georgina Chapman, after a slew of actresses accused the movie mogul of sexual harassment and assault in October 2017.

Some claimed Chapman knew about her husband’s alleged misdeeds, and that her husband coerced starlets into wearing Marchesa’s designs to raise the profile of the brand. #BoycottMarchesa started to trend on Twitter.

Chapman vehemently denies that she knew anything about Weinstein’s sexual misconduct in the June issue of Vogue, saying “there was a part of me that was terribly naïve, clearly so naïve”.

Shortly after the sex scandal broke, she left her husband and the Marchesa brand went to ground.

In January, Marchesa even cancelled the catwalk show for their 2018 Autumn collection. Chapman told Vogue that she did so as a mark of respect in the wake of the #MeToo movement. “All the women who have been hurt deserve dignity and respect, so I want to give it the time it deserves. It’s a time for mourning, really.”

Now it seems the time for mourning is over. Marchesa made a very public return to the spotlight earlier this month when actress Scarlett Johansson wore one of their designs to the Met Gala.

The A-lister, who donned an off-the-shoulder Marchesa gown with floral embellishments, told Entertainment Tonight, “I wore Marchesa because their clothes make women feel confident and beautiful, and it’s my pleasure to support a brand created by two incredibly talented and important female designers.”

Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue, has also spoken out in support of Chapman, who tells her side of the story in the magazine’s June issue.

In her editor’s letter, Wintour writes that she is “firmly convinced” that Chapman had no knowledge of Weinstein’s misconduct, and that blaming her for any of it is wrong. She adds, “I believe that one should not hold a person responsible for the actions of his or her partner.” 

With a high-profile return to the red carpet, backing from the fashion industry’s bible and the brand predicted to show at New York Fashion Week in September, it seems Chapman and Marchesa’s time in exile is up.