Jennifer Esposito Recalls a ‘Harvey Weinstein-esque’ Producer ArticlePure

Jennifer Esposito is recalling a time early in her career made difficult by a “Harvey Weinstein-esque type person.” 

While the actress and filmmaker, 51, did not name the “notorious, brutal” producer in question, she revealed on the June 12 episode of the She Pivots podcast that he almost derailed her Hollywood career when she was 26. 

“He fired me for no reason,” alleged the Brooklyn-born actress, who did not specify the role or project the incident involved. “He wanted someone else and he got her.”

Furthermore, she told host Emily Tisch Sussman, the producer discouraged others who later wanted to hire her. “He said I was a drug addict. [That] never happened.” The man “had the power and used it to completely end a young girl’s career at 26 years old.”

Esposito recalled that she was dropped by her agency, where staffers reportedly knew about the unfair treatment but told her they couldn’t help. “I casually got moved to the desk of the assistant and then casually [pushed] out the door, and I couldn’t get work. I didn’t have an agent and a manager for two and a half years.”

The Blue Bloods actress is the writer, director and star of Fresh Kills, a Staten Island-set crime drama that marks her feature-length directorial debut. The film is in theaters now after a 2023 Tribeca Film Festival premiere. 

On She Pivots, Esposito said that the project “really was to that kid,” in reference to her 26-year-old self. “It was a hard time. But it was also a beautiful time. Because if I wasn’t that kid, I would have never been this woman. And I’m very proud of who I am and very proud of what I’ve done,” she said. 

“I know for a fact that if that didn’t happen with that producer and my road had been easier, I would have never written and directed what I just did,” she continued. “I gave her her career back in the way that she could do it. Not the way someone else told me I could do it. I needed to right the wrong again.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

In the She Pivots interview, Esposito opened up about her years-long struggle with celiac disease. She also discussed symptoms in greater detail during her appearance on the June 11 episode of Christina Applegate and Jamie-Lynn Sigler’s podcast MeSsy.

Fresh Kills, which costars Emily Bader, Odessa A’zion, Domenick Lombardozzi, Nick Cirillo and Annabella Sciorra, is in theaters now.