Fired: Harvey Weinstein has been ousted from the company he founded in 2005 after stories emerged of multiple alleged sexual harassment claims going back decades

Harvey Weinstein - the Hollywood mogul so powerful that Meryl Streep once called him 'God' - has been fired 'by email' from his own production company in the wake of the sexual harassment claims that emerged last week.

The 65-year-old was ousted from The Weinstein Company - which he founded with his brother Bob in 2005 - by its board of directors on Sunday.

The firing comes after a bombshell report alleged Weinstein, whose company produced such hits as 'The King's Speech' and 'The Artist,' preyed on young women hoping to break into the film industry.

The accusers - including celebrities such as Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd - say Weinstein promised to help advance their careers in exchange for sexual favors, pressuring them to massage him and watch him naked.

In a statement confirming the producer's departure, the The Weinstein Company said: 'In light of new information about misconduct by Harvey Weinstein that has emerged in the past few days, the directors of The Weinstein Company - Robert Weinstein, Lance Maerov, Richard Koenigsberg and Tarak Ben Ammar - have determined, and have informed Harvey Weinstein, that his employment with The Weinstein Company is terminated, effective immediately.'

Until this week, Weinstein had been one of the most imposing - and seemingly untouchable - figures in the movie industry.

But while stories about Weinstein have largely only circulated in media and Hollywood circles for decades, the lid is now off - thanks to an explosive report in the New York Times on Thursday that uncovered a string of sexual harassment allegations and cover-ups.

As news of his firing started to emerge on Sunday, Hollywood figures came forward to applaud the decision.

Ashley Judd thanked Hollywood stars including Heather Graham and Susan Sarandon who had backed her on Twitter and McGowan tweeted that the team that produced the NYT article had 'saved lives' with their 'bravery'.

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Claims: Rose McGowan (left) reportedly signed a non-disclosure agreement Weinstein settled a suit for $100,000 in 1995. Ashley Judd (right) says Weinstein asked her to watch him shower

Rose McGowan tweeted that the team that produced the NYT article had 'saved lives' with their 'bravery'

The article - several aspects of which Weinstein disputes, and over which he is currently suing the NYT for $50 million - claimed that he had harassed and then paid off several women over the past two decades.

On Friday the movie executive - whose name is attached to such films as Pulp Fiction, Shakespeare in Love and The Lord of the Rings - took a voluntary leave of absence from the company.

That same day, one third of its all-male board resigned. Another member, Paul Tudor Jones, resigned on Saturday.

And on Sunday, Weinstein was kicked out - after an explosive confrontation with the remaining directors, including his own brother, The Hollywood Reporter said.

It claimed that Harvey was told by the remaining directors, including Bob Weinstein, with whom he had founded the company, that he had to resign from his position.

Weinstein assured the directors that the furor would 'blow over' - despite it being the biggest entertainment story in a long time.

They disagreed - and fired Weinstein from his own company by email, according to The New York Times.

Italian actress and model Ambra Battilana (left) reportedly had her breasts groped in 2015 by Weinstein; Ex-Fox host Lauren Sivan (right) said he masturbated in front of her in 2007

Not everyone was applauding Sunday's firing for its swiftness. Actress Lena Dunham tweeted her reaction last night

On Sunday night, actor Mark Ruffalo said he hoped 'we are now seeing the beginning of the end of these abuses'. Ashley Judd then replied to say 'Thank you'

Debevoise & Plimpton, the law firm hired on Friday by the Weinstein Company, will continue its investigation into his alleged transgressions.

The sexual harassment incidents allegedly took place both during his time with the Weinstein Company and previously, when he worked for Miramax.

It's an especially grim end for Weinstein, who was co-founder and co-chairman of the company, and had also been its face and prime operator.

Under his direction, the Weinstein Company had become a leader in independent film and near-annual presence at the Academy Awards.

Among the films distributed by the company was The Hunting Grounds, a 2015 documentary on campus sexual assault.

Harvey Weinstein on Thursday issued a lengthy statement in which he acknowledged causing 'a lot of pain.'

ROSE MCGOWAN'S FURY OVER 'SILENCE' Rose McGowan, one of the women who reportedly sued Weinstein but later settled, hit out at women who are silent over sexual abuse on Sunday. 'Ladies of Hollywood, your silence is deafening,' she said, telling them to 'get brave.' McGowan, who reportedly signed a non-disclosure agreement after settling for $100,000, has referred obliquely to her alleged abuse. Last year, she tweeted under the hashtag #WhyWomenDontReport with the message 'Because my ex sold our movie to my rapist for distribution'. Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow, who have all won Oscars for starring in Weinstein films, have made no public comment. On Sunday McGowan took to Twitter to share a photo of herself in her 20s, saying those who are silent about abuse shame the abusers' victim Advertisement

He also blamed his behavior on coming 'of age in the 60s and 70s, when all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different. That was the culture then.'

The mogul also asked for 'a second chance,' and said that he had been learning about proper behavior and combating his more destructive urges thanks to his attorney, Lisa Bloom.

But on Saturday Bloom, daughter of well-known Los Angeles women's rights attorney Gloria Allred, withdrew from representing Weinstein - as did another adviser, Lanny Davis.

An attorney for Weinstein didn't immediately return messages Sunday.

A spokesperson for The Weinstein Company declined to provide further details on Weinstein's firing.

Messages left for attorney John Keirnan of the firm Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, who had been appointed to lead an investigation, weren't immediately returned Sunday.

According to The Wrap, a source with knowledge of the company has suggested the firm will now change its name in the wake of the scandal.

While the decision has not yet been formalized, board members have discussed the idea and are expected to give it the go ahead.

As news of Sunday's firing started to emerge yesterday, Hollywood figures shared their reaction online.

Rose McGowan wrote on Twitter: 'I salute you #jodikantor #megantwohey & @nyt editor thank you for your incredible work. You’ve saved lives with your bravery.'

James Gunn, who directed Guardians of the Galaxy, wrote: 'If even 1/10th of the stories about Harvey Weinstein are true (and I believe they are), then good f**king riddance. That s**t’s gotta stop.'

Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson, whose accusations of sexual harassment led to the downfall last year of former Fox CEO Roger Ailes, wrote in response to the firing: 'Women's voices heard. Again and Finally. #BeFierceAlways Its working.'

Not everyone was impressed with the swiftness of the board's decision.

Actress Lena Dunham tweeted Sunday night, 'Easy to think Weinstein company took swift action but this has actually been the slowest action because they always always knew.'

Since the New York Times report came out, others have come forward to remark on Weinstein's alleged abuses.

On Sunday, Liza Campbell, an artist and writer, told UK newspaper The Times that she'd had an unsavory encounter with Weinstein in 1995.

Campbell said she had been working as a script reader for Miramax, but after working on Shakespeare in Love and the Usual Suspects, the scripts dried up.

She said she complained to Weinstein, before he invited her over to his hotel to discuss it. But when she got to his room, she said, she heard him disrobing out of view before asking her to 'jump in the bath' with him.

'My immediate reaction was fury,' she said. 'I'm a mother, a bloody grown-up, not some naive ingénue; what the hell does he take me for?'

She added: 'I also felt fear. Harvey Weinstein is huge, a pocked bullock, like a hitman from The Sopranos.'

'Propositioned': Artist Liza Campbell claims that while working for Miramax in the 1990s, Weinstein invited her to his hotel and asked her to bathe with him; she says she fled

Alleged victims: Judd (left in 1997 with Weinstein and Vince Vaughan) and McGowan (right) were reportedly victims of Weinstein's advances. McGowan has obliquely referred to being raped by an unnamed studio head

Campbell said she responded by telling him, 'If you come back into this room with no clothes on I'm going to f**king lose my temper,' before quickly leaving.

'It took me days to calm down from the anger I felt and the crushing realization that there never was a job; only a hidden hook.'

Elizabeth Karlsen, the Oscar-nominated producer of The Crying Game, among others, told The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday that she'd been informed of a sexual harassment accusation almost 30 years ago.

That claim was made by a young female executive at Weinstein's then-company, Miramax, she said. The woman had been staying in a house in London rented by the studio.

'She came to me directly and said that [Weinstein] had appeared naked in her bedroom,' Karlsen said.

'I don't know the extent of what did happen, but there was an out-of-court settlement and she left the company.''

Another claim emerged on Friday as former Fox News host Laura Sivan told The Huffington Post that Weinstein had masturbated in front of her in New York in 2007.

She alleged that Weinstein had offered to show her around a closed restaurant underneath a club they'd been attending, then, while there, leaned in to kiss her.

When Sivan, then an anchor on a local cable channel, said she had a boyfriend, he reportedly told her: 'Well, can you just stand there and shut up.'

With Sivan unable to leave except past him or through the kitchen, he then exposed himself and masturbated to completion, she alleged.

Sivan said that Weinstein's power in media circles had left her afraid to speak up, and on Sunday tweeted: 'For those asking why I waited? YOU try telling that story 10yrs ago. Only possible now because of women with bigger names far braver than me.'

Weinstein is seen here arriving at the Oscars in Los Angeles in 2014. He has been involved in the production or distribution of movies such as Shakespeare in Love and Pulp Fiction

Ex-Fox host Lauren Sivan said Weinstein cornered her and masturbated in front of her in 2007, and that she only feels safe to speak up now because of the claims made by other women

As well as sexual harassment, Weinstein has also been accused of violent acts.

Actor Nathan Lane claimed that Weinstein had thrown him up against a wall for a wisecrack he made while the master of ceremonies at a 2000 birthday for Hillary Clinton.

Upset about a joke regarding then-New York mayor Rudy Giuliani's hair, Weinstein allegedly grabbed him and shouted 'this is my f***ing show, we don't need you'.

Lane, now 61, alluded to the incident for the first time on Saturday night when he was speaking with Michael Schulman at the New Yorker Festival.

The Broadway start said he came back with another crack: 'You can't hurt me, I don't have a film career.'

On Thursday, New York magazine's Rebecca Traister recounted how Weinstein had objected to her question about the movie O while at a party in New York on the eve of the 2000 election.

She wrote that 'though the recording has alas been lost to time, I recall that he called me a c**t and declared that he was glad he was the 'f**king sheriff of this f**king lawless piece-of-s**t town.''

'When my colleague Andrew [Goldman] (who was also then my boyfriend) intervened, first calming him down and then trying to extract an apology, Weinstein went nuclear,' she said.

She claimed he pushed Goldman 'down a set of steps inside the Tribeca Grand - knocking him over with such force that his tape recorder hit a woman, who suffered long-term injury - and dragging [him], in a headlock, onto Sixth Avenue.

Traister noted that his power in 2000 was such that 'despite the dozens of camera flashes that went off on that sidewalk that night... I have never once seen a photo.'

McGowan took to her Twitter page Friday evening to accuse any women in Hollywood who aren't now speak up against Weinstein of being complicit with a 'monster'

Lauren O'Connor (pictured), formerly of the Weinstein Company, said one of her colleagues had been pressured by Weinstein into giving a naked massage

That silence extended to Hollywood stars this week, as a number of prominent celebrities fell silent over the Weinstein case.

Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow, who have all won Oscars for starring in Weinstein films, have made no public comment.

They are not alone in their silence either, as many other women who have sang the praises of Weinstein while speaking out against harassment also went mute.

They included Kate Hudson, Cate Blanchett, Renee Zellweger, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Penelope Cruz, Toni Collette, and Uma Thurman.

MERYL STREEP CALLED WEINSTEIN 'GOD' While collecting her 2012 Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama, Meryl Streep referred to Weinstein as 'God'. She was collecting the award for her starring role in Margaret Thatcher biopic The Iron Lady - which Weinstein was not involved in - when she made the remark. 'I just want to thank my agent, Kevin Huvane, and God - Harvey Weinstein.' The remark was met with scattered shrieks of laughter and applause. Weinstein was seen laughing with his head in his hands. 'The punisher,' she continued, 'Old Testament, I guess.' Advertisement

The cries of foul only got louder on Saturday when SNL cut gags about Weinstein that had been performed during its dress rehearsal.

'Why didn't big mouth Michael Che' say anything about Harvey Weinstein on SNL 'Weekend Update'? He's got so much opinion about everything else,' Pastor Darrell Scott asked on Twitter - one of many to spot the startling omission from the Weekend Update segment.

When confronted with the complaints as he left the SNL after-party on Sunday morning, producer Lorne Michaels shrugged it off, saying he avoided the Weinstein story because 'It's a New York thing.'

Curiously, a joke about Weinstein did make its way into another Michaels-produced show, 30 Rock, in a 2012 episode.

In that story, ditzy TV star Jenna Maroney says: 'Oh please, I'm not afraid of anyone in showbusiness. I turned down intercourse with Harvey Weinstein on no less than three occasions... out of five.'

On Sunday, Donald Trump Jr attacked host Jimmy Kimmel on Twitter, asking him his thoughts on Weinstein, and daring him to include the producer in his late-night monologue.

Kimmel evaded the remarks, saying the story is 'disgusting' and replying with a video of Donald Trump's famous 'grab them by the p***y' remark.

SNL Weekend Update hosts Colin Jost (left) and Michael Che (right) came under fire after Saturday's show failed to address the Weinstein story

SNL did perform Weinstein material in dress rehearsals but cut them for the final show, which was hosted by Gal Gadot (pictured). Producer Lorne Michaels said the reason they were cut was because 'It's a New York thing'

Donald Trump Jr. dared Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel to comment on the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault scandal on Saturday

Kimmel responded by poking fun at the fact that it was the NY Times - the newspaper most passionately hated by the Trumps - which broke the story

Kimmel fired back against Trump Jr. again, sharing a video to his father's 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he boasted about grabbing women 'by the p***y'

Weinstein and his lawyers have criticized The New York Times' report in statements and interviews.

'We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting,' said a New York Times spokesperson in a statement.

'Mr Weinstein was aware and able to respond to specific allegations in our story before publication. In fact, we published his response in full.'

The allegations triggered cascading chaos at the Weinstein Company. Numerous members of its all-male board have stepped down since Thursday.

In 2015, a memo sent by one Weinstein Company employee, Laureon O'Connor, to its executives accusing it of a 'toxic culture,' The New York Times reported on Thursday.

Several members of its all-male board, including Bob Weinstein, were 'alarmed' the NYT said, but they were assured there was no need to investigate.

O'Connor, who had claimed a colleague had been pressured into giving Harvey Weinstein a naked massage, reached a settlement with the company.

She then retracted her complaint and thanked the mogul for the opportunities he'd given her, the paper said.