From Thursday to Saturday, I called more than 40 entertainment industry players, and almost all refused to speak for the record. Some said it was because their companies (or publicists) needed to approve anything they would say, while others gave reasons that painted a picture of a community hobbled by fear, self-interest and hypocrisy. “Ladies of Hollywood,” Rose McGowan, one of the actresses who settled with Mr. Weinstein, wrote on Twitter on Friday, “your silence is deafening.”

A publicist for an A-list actress said there was no “upside” for her client to comment, especially since she didn’t have a movie to promote. One producer wanted to know who else was on the record so he would be “quoted in good company.” An agent said he was repulsed by the silence and quoted a Latin phrase meaning, “He who sits quietly gives consent.” Then he refused to talk.