Former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and estranged wife Georgina Chapman in better days. (Photo: Bang ShowBiz)

Harvey Weinstein hobbled into court without the aid of a walker on the opening day in his sex crimes trial and heard a prosecutor detail how the ex-movie mogul “used his power and prestige in the entertainment industry” to sexually assault women.

Weinstein faces five counts pertaining to sexual assault, including two counts of predatory sexual assault, two counts of rape and one count of criminal sex act.

“Over the course of the testimony, you will come to see that the man seated on that side of the court room, despite what your eyes are looking at, is not a harmless old man,” assistant district attorney Meghan Hast.

She called him a “sexual predator and rapist”

“You will see that the defendant kept his rape victims close, close as he could, to make sure they couldn’t report it,” she said.

Hast said some of the testimony and evidence, including photographs, will be graphic, including a description of Weinstein’s ejaculate, discolored by medicine he used for erectile dysfunction; “something vile and unforgettable,” she said.

The case will focus on two alleged victims, Miriam “Mimi” Haleyi and Jessica Mann, described as an aspiring actress who met Weinstein in 2013 as she tried to launch her career in Hollywood.

Sopranos actress Annabella Sciorra and actresses Dawn Dunning, Tara Ley Wolf and Lauren Young are also likely to testify.

The defense is leaning heavily on text messages and other communications from the alleged victims over time that, the defense claims, suggest the relationships were consensual.

Weinstein’s legal team claims “loving” emails sent by the witnesses who have accused him of sexual misconduct number in the dozens.

Lawyer Damon Cheronis said in court on Tuesday (Jan. 21) that he has a catalog of letters written by the alleged victims which will “undercut” prosecutor arguments that his client was a serial sexual predator.

He claimed one accuser sent Weinstein her new phone number after an alleged encounter, while another sent him an email asking to introduce him to her mother, explaining.

“We have dozens and dozens and dozens of emails which include statements from complaining witnesses that they were involved in a relationship with Mr. Weinstein, including loving relationships and sexual encounters, and show in one case that they care about him.”

Hast parried that argument in her opening comments.

“She tried to have some sort of relationship with the defendant,” Hast said referring to Mann.

“Over the next few months [and] years, she continued to see him. You will learn that Jessica Mann felt trapped. She felt that there was no way to get out without suffering — her friends, her career, or worse, physical harm. She could do this, she thought.

“Maybe he really did think she was talented. Maybe I can just grin and bear it. He became more demanding and violent, more violent and disgusting, so disgusting. Jessica Mann tried to put on a brave face, pretending to the world that nothing was wrong. All the while, you will learn, she was dying inside.”

“Ultimately, this trial is about the defendant’s desire to conquest. It’s for his complete lack of empathy that he must be held accountable,” the prosecutor asserted.

More than two dozen Weinstein accusers say they “stand in solidarity” against the disgraced movie mogul as his criminal trial begins in New York City.

The women – who described themselves as the 27 Silence Breakers – released a joint statement to show their support for those testifying in court.

“We stand in solidarity with Annabella Sciorra, Mimi Haleyi, Dawn Dunning and all of the women who will courageously testify against Harvey Weinstein in court. For decades, Weinstein wielded his power to mentally, physically and professionally abuse and silence women with impunity,” they said in a statement.

“Starting today, he will finally be forced to face his accusers and reckon with the consequences of his monstrous crimes. Whether we are in the court room or supporting our fellow Silence Breakers from around the world, we are all in awe of their selflessness and bravery. We will continue to support them by speaking out and telling our stories until this serial predator is brought to justice.”

In his rebuttal, Cheronis claimed the prosecution was misleading jurors.

“What we just heard from Ms. Hast was truly a narrative that was spun to explain things that were inexplicable,” he said. “What you’re going to see is going to be shocking based on opening statements and what you’ve just heard.”

Cheronis showed jurors email messages that were sent by Mann to Weinstein. In one September 2013 message, Mann told him, “You have mastered storytelling and continually outdoing yourself and the competition. You are the bar!”

“Members of the jury, you are going to ask yourself: What is going on?” Cheronis said.

“Those are her words. You are going to see an actual loving relationship in hundreds of emails and communications between Harvey Weinstein and Jessica Mann. You are going to see it, and when you see it, you’re going to ask urself, ‘What is going on? Is this man guilty beyond a reasonable doubt? No.'”

Defense documents include Mann’s “diary” that includes phone notes to herself. “You can lie to anybody,” he said. “You can’t lie to yourself,” Cheronis said.

Weinstein was expressionless for most of Hast’s presentation. For the first time since his trial began, Jan. 6, he walked to the counsel’s table without a walker.