Harvey Weinstein Owes Kevin Smith Royalties For Movie ’Clerks,’ Filmmaker Says

Harvey Weinstein still owes filmmaker and comedian Kevin Smith royalties for one of the latter’s films.

In a recent interview with Variety, Smith was asked about his working relationship with Weinstein. The Miramax co-founder was notorious for not paying people he worked with, and Smith experienced it firsthand.

“I did encounter that,” Smith confessed. “And I’m still out money. But you got to understand, I never cared about the money. My whole career, my reps were like: ‘You’re supposed to be making far more.’ Money’s never been a motivator for me.”

Smith explained that Weinstein's company bought his movie "Clerks" for $227,000 and promised to pay him royalties when it starts earning money. However, the comedian was denied his share by Weinstein for a long time despite "Clerks" later becoming a hit.

“This much I know. They bought ‘Clerks’ for $227,000. And the movie went out and made $3 million at the box office and stuff. And it took seven years for us to see any profit from that movie. For seven years, they were like: ‘Nope, the movie is still not in profit.’ And we were like ‘How?’ And then there were things,” he explained.

According to Smith, he sold his first movie “Clerks” to Weinstein and it made to Sundance Film Festival in 1994 along with three other films — “Fresh,” “The Picture Bride,” and “Pulp Fiction.” He was given a free hotel room and there was a Miramax yatcht where the stars hung out. They also joined the celebrities there including Quentin Tarantino. However, the yacht wasn’t for Smith.

After the event, they received the financial statement and was surprised to find out that the bill that Weinstein spent for Cannes was billed to the four movies equally even if they didn’t enjoy the same luxury as Weinstein. Smith’s lawyer encouraged him to audit them, but Smith declined.

“No, I can’t audit people I’m in business with. That’s gross,” he explained. “And we never audited them for years until after ‘Clerks 2.’ And then we audited them years later and got a bunch of money. If I was a better business person, I would have gone for more money. But it felt like – ‘Oh, there it is. That’s their process. Movie math.’“

In February, Weinstein was convicted of first-degree sexual assault and third-degree rape. He was surprised with the verdict and found it “disappointing.” In fact, according to his lawyer Arthur Aidala, he kept repeating the words “I’m innocent” when he heard the sentence.

Weinstein’s legal counsel said that they would appeal and try to keep him on house arrest due to health issues. Just recently, Weinstein tested positive for coronavirus after he was transferred to the Wende Correctional Facility from NYC’s Rikers Island.

Meanwhile, Smith said that Johnny Depp is perfect to play the role of Joker in the “Batman” movie. The director, filmmaker and producer said that Depp is a fun man and and he plays his roles well.