Uma Thurman defends Quentin Tarantino, blames Kill Bill car crash on Harvey Weinstein and others

‘The circumstances of this event were negligent to the point of criminality’

Uma Thurman has posted footage of the car crash that took place on the set of Kill Bill, just days after highlighting the incident during a recent interview, along with a statement defending director Quentin Tarantino and blaming Harvey Weinstein for the ensuing cover-up.

Speaking to The New York Times, the actor alleged Tarantino persuaded her to partake in the dangerous “stunt” despite knowing there were possible risks.

Following the article’s publication, Thurman posted footage on Instagram of herself driving the car – which she previously described as a “death-box” – adding a new statement about the incident.

“I post this clip to memorialise its full exposure in the NYT by Maureen Dowd. The circumstances of this event were negligent to the point of criminality. I do not believe though with malicious intent,” she wrote alongside the footage.

“Quentin Tarantino was deeply regretful and remains remorseful about this sorry event, and gave me the footage years later so I could expose it and let it see the light of day, regardless of it most likely being an event for which justice will never be possible.

“He also did so with full knowledge it could cause him personal harm, and I am proud of him for doing the right thing and for his courage.

“THE COVER UP after the fact is UNFORGIVABLE. For this, I hold Lawrence Bender [producer], E. Bennett Walsh [executive producer], and the notorious Harvey Weinstein [producer] solely responsible. They lied, destroyed evidence, and continue to lie about the permanent harm they caused and then chose to suppress.

“The cover-up did have malicious intent, and shame on these three for all eternity. CAA [Creative Artists Agency, talent agency] never sent anyone to Mexico. I hope they look after other clients more respectfully if they in fact want to do the job for which they take money with any decency.”

Speaking to Deadline following the initial New York Times interview and Instagram posts were published, Tarantino has defended himself.

Discussing his current relationship with Thurman, the director said: “We’ve been okay. Uma was in turmoil about the uprising against me this whole weekend. She blames me for not talking to Maureen Dowd, saying it’s your own damn fault.

“She never meant this to roll over onto me. We’ve been talking about it ad-nauseum and I feel bad because she has been doing a Broadway play, at the same time.

“The whole weekend, we’ve been talking. The uproar that happened against me, she was not prepared for. We have a long complicated history. We have been dealing with it for 22 years. We’re both one of the closest people in each other’s lives.

“So it was rather shocking to read this article, where the headline is about Uma’s anger, and lumping me into her anger about Harvey. As much detail as they went into, no one seemed to care about the Harvey stuff.”

During the New York Times interview, Thurman alleges Weinstein assaulted her while they were both in England, claims the producer has denied.

Lawrence Bender, E. Bennett Walsh, and Harvey Weinstein have been contacted for comment by The Independent.