Lena Dunham and former Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown claim to have warned staff close to Hillary Clinton about Harvey Weinstein's alleged sexual misconduct long before this year's raft of public accusations.

Speaking to the New York Times, Dunham – the creator and star of HBO's Girls – repeated comments she claims to have made last year to Kristina Schake, the deputy communications director for Clinton's 2016 US presidential election campaign: “I just want you to let you know that Harvey’s a rapist and this is going to come out at some point... I think it’s a really bad idea for him to host fundraisers and be involved because it’s an open secret in Hollywood that he has a problem with sexual assault."

Clinton has been criticised for her closeness to the disgraced film producer, who organised a fundraising show for her campaign at a Broadway theatre, with guest stars including Julia Roberts and Anne Hathaway. This October, Clinton said she was “shocked and appalled" to hear the allegations against Weinstein, suggesting she was previously unaware of any wrongdoing by the Oscar-winning producer.

Nick Merrill, Clinton's communications director, has disputed Dunham's account of events. "We were shocked when we learned what he’d done," he said. "As to claims about a warning, that’s something staff wouldn’t forget... Only [Dunham] can answer why she would tell [Clinton's staff] instead of those who could stop him.”