As the Harvey Weinstein scandal unfolds, police departments in multiple states are looking into whether criminal investigations are warranted. Meanwhile, one of his accusers was defended and another pulled out of a public appearance, and the story continues to be a topic on late night television shows, including Wednesday's Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah.

Here's the latest news as it happens:

Los Angeles police confirm investigation of possible rape case involving Weinstein

Earlier this week the LAPD said there were no Weinstein-related cases under investigation and appealed to potential accusers to come forward with their stories. On Thursday that changed with a tweet.

"#LAPD Robbery Homicide (Division) has interviewed a potential sexual assault victim involving Harvey Weinstein which allegedly occurred in 2013. Investigation ongoing."

No further details were forthcoming from police. But if true, the accuser would be the sixth woman to allege rape or forcible sex acts by Weinstein in multiple states. Moreover, the alleged crime would fall within California's 10-year statute of limitations at the time, possibly leading to a prosecution.

According to her lawyer, David Ring, the accuser is a 38-year-old Italian model/actress who met with sex-crimes detectives Thursday to recount her story that Weinstein raped her in the bathroom of her hotel room near Beverly Hills in February 2013 after she attended an Italian film, fashion and art festival in Los Angeles.

“When he left, he acted like nothing happened,” the woman said in an interview with The Los Angeles Times. “I barely knew this man. It was the most demeaning thing ever done to me by far. It sickens me still. …He made me feel like an object, like nothing with all his power.”

She regretted not filing a complaint with police at the time, although she did tell a priest, a friend and her nanny. After the Weinstein scandal broke, she came forward at the urging of her children and with the help of Ring, who specializes in sex-abuse cases and once represented a woman who accused Charlie Sheen of threatening her.

“My client is grateful to all the courageous women who have already come forward to finally expose Weinstein,” Ring said in a statement to USA TODAY. “These women may not have realized it, but they gave my client the support and encouragement to hold Weinstein accountable for this horrible act.”

Ring plans to hold a press conference in Los Angeles Friday to discuss the case.

Lupita Nyong'o says Harvey Weinstein pressured her for a massage

Lupita Nyong'o has written a first-person account detailing her nightmarish experiences with producer Harvey Weinstein as a Yale drama student.

In a New York Times op-ed piece published Thursday, the Oscar-winning actress describes being invited to Weinstein's home in Westport, Conn., shortly after meeting him in 2011.

"Harvey led me into a bedroom — his bedroom — and announced that he wanted to give me a massage. I thought he was joking at first. He was not," Nyong'o wrote.

She convinced Weinstein to let her massage him to take control of the situation and "to know exactly where his hands were at all times." She left when he decided to take off his pants.

Later, at a business dinner, he tried to take her to a private room. "I was stunned," she wrote. "He told me not to be so naïve."

Quentin Tarantino says he "knew enough" to do more to stop Weinstein

Quentin Tarantino has spoken out on his longtime producer Harvey Weinstein, acknowledging that he's ashamed he was aware of some of Weinstein's abhorrent acts but did not take a stand against them.

“I knew enough to do more than I did,” the director told The New York Times in an interview published Thursday. "I wish I had taken responsibility for what I heard."

Tarantino said that his own former girlfriend, actress Mira Sorvino, told him about unwelcome advances and unwanted touching by Weinstein. “What I did was marginalize the incidents,” he said.

NYPD updates status report on its search for possible new accusers

After New York media reports appeared this week suggesting there may be new, previously unknown accusers of Weinstein, New York detectives began looking for them. So far, nothing has been found, said Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce in a statement Thursday to USA TODAY.

"We have been reviewing records in an effort to identify any prior complaints involving him. To date, no official complaint reports have been identified," Boyce's statement said. "In addition, several calls have been received on our CrimeStoppers Hotline regarding Mr. Weinstein. None of those calls have alleged any criminal conduct within the New York City area."

Those calls have been referred to other jurisdictions in the U.S. and overseas; he declined to identify them, and would not comment on the nature of the calls.

"As part of our inquiries, detectives have conducted interviews, the specifics of which will not be provided at this time," due to privacy and confidentiality concerns, he added. He concluded with an appeal that has been echoed by other police agencies, including Los Angeles and London, where Weinstein allegations have been raised.

"We encourage anyone who may have information about any sexual offenses to report it to the police."

Blythe Danner defends daughter Gwyneth Paltrow after 'disparaging' 'NYT' op-ed

Blythe Danner wrote a letter to the editor of The New York Times to register her disgust at Maureen Dowd’s Sunday op-ed that insinuated her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow sold out by continuing to work with Weinstein even after he asked him for a massage in his hotel room when she was 22.

“After her initial shock, Gwyneth left the room immediately, and, despite the fact that Mr. Weinstein threatened her if she ever spoke of what happened, she reported it to her agent and to her boyfriend at the time, Brad Pitt, who confronted Mr. Weinstein.”

Danner continued, “Gwyneth did not “put aside her qualms to become ‘the first lady of Miramax’ back then, as Ms. Dowd would have it. She continued to hold her own and insist that Mr. Weinstein treat her with respect.”

With a career spanning four decades, she acknowledged she was well aware of the industry’s treatment of women.

“No one would argue that Harvey Weinstein isn’t finally getting what he deserves,” she wrote. “But I hope that this is the point of no return where change will occur, not only in our industry but also others.”

Danner concluded, “I suggest that the pundits stop casting aspersions on the women who have confronted unwanted sexual advances in the manner each sees fit and concentrate on the constructive ways to prevent this behavior in the future.”

Rose McGowan drops from sight

Rose McGowan, one of the leading named accusers of Weinstein (she says he raped her in a hotel room at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah in 1997), was due to accept an award at the Tallgrass Film Festival in Kansas but pulled out less than 24 hours before she was due, the festival announced late Wednesday.

"We are sorry to announce that Rose McGowan, this year’s recipient of the Ad Astra Award, has canceled all upcoming public appearances due to compounding factors surrounding recent revelations in the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment case," according to a press release on the Wichita festival's website.

McGowan had also been expected to attend a screening of her directorial debut, Dawn.

Timeline: Weinstein's history of Hollywood success and hidden abuses

Tallgrass creative director Lela Meadow-Conner said the festival is "disappointed" but understands that McGowan's "well-being is the priority. We support her and our thoughts are with her. We’ll seize this opportunity to amplify her message and celebrate all the women filmmakers with works here at the 15th annual festival."

She praised McGowan for helping to make the world aware of "rampant sexual harassment within the entertainment industry." McGowan's accusations against Weinstein featured in the recent media investigations of the fallen producer's alleged sexual abuse of women dating back decades, and she has continued to attack him and the entertainment industry on social media.

In McGowan's honor, a panel of women filmmakers at the festival will gather Thursday evening for "a frank conversation, because the message doesn’t stop here,” Meadow-Conner said.

“Tallgrass has sought to honor Rose McGowan for three years now as we have always felt she epitomizes our motto: Stubbornly independent," Nick Pope, Tallgrass’s program director, added. "We will still honor her achievements from afar.”

McGowan did not comment on her cancellation; an email to her publicist was not immediately returned.

Howard Stern speaks out

The radio show host voiced his confusion over the accusations during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday. "First of all, when did (Weinstein) have time to make movies?" Stern asked in the NSFW segment. "I thought movie making was hard."

Stern continued, telling the late night talk show host, "It's an unbelievable story, and I said all these guys who do sexual harassment, I mean they're freaks.

"This big fat guy, what does he think? He says to a woman... 'Listen, I'm gonna get in the shower. I want you to watch me nude,'" Stern added. "Now, I'm a man, if you saw me naked, you'd throw up. There is no girl on the planet that wants to see Harvey Weinstein naked and is going to get aroused."

More:Harvey Weinstein scandal: Channing Tatum says he won't work with Weinstein Co. any longer

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Mayim Bialik 'truly sorry' for her opinion piece on Weinstein

One of the side stories of the Weinstein scandal involves the people who have spoken out about it and then faced reproach for what they said or wrote, such as Big Bang Theory’s Mayim Bialik.

She’s already expressed regrets for her New York Times column last week, which some critics interpreted as a blame-the-victim attitude to the allegations against Weinstein.

She addressed the backlash in a tweet late Saturday and in a Facebook Live interview with the Times on Monday, but seemed to suggest she regretted more how her column was interpreted than what she wrote.

On Wednesday, to make sure everyone understands, Bialik took to Twitter to say she was really, really sorry for “causing so much pain.”

“Let me say clearly and explicitly that I am very sorry,” she wrote. “What you wear and how you behave does not provide any protection from assault, nor does the way you dress or act in any way make you responsible for being assaulted; you are never responsible for being assaulted….I am truly sorry for causing so much pain, and I hope you can all forgive me.”

Ellen DeGeneres praises the #MeToo movement

Daytime talk show host Ellen DeGeneres commended those who have come forth about being sexually harassed or assaulted on social media by chiming in with #MeToo on her program Thursday.

The movement, started by activist Tarana Burke, began more than 10 years ago as an initiative to help young women, "particularly young women of color from low wealth communities," who have been sexually abused, assaulted, exploited or harassed. Actress Alyssa Milano helped the hashtag go viral with a tweet on Sunday.

"She tweeted out, 'If all (the) women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too.’ as a status, we might give people a sense of magnitude of the problem,' DeGeneres explained. "Millions of people have come out posting ‘Me Too.’ I applaud them all, I think it’s brave, and I think it’s important to speak out and not be shamed by anyone.

"It is not always easy, but we have to do that," she continued. "And that is why I posted and I will say it right now out loud — me too."

On Tuesday, the comedian tweeted simply "#MeToo." More:Why #MeToo is taking over your social media feeds

More:The #MeToo movement didn't begin with Harvey Weinstein. And it won't end there

"Part of the problem is that from a young age, girls are taught to stay quiet and be nice and that boys are stronger and somehow, we are less than," DeGeneres added.

"That is why it’s hard for us to speak out and even when we do speak out, people don’t believe us. But there is power in numbers and good for us. Good for everyone speaking out."

Contributing: William Cummings, The Associated Press

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