A New York state appeals court on Thursday blocked Harvey Weinstein's bid to move his sex crimes trial out of Manhattan.

The New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department denied "in its entirety" Weinstein's motion to change venue ahead the trial, which is scheduled to begin Jan. 6.

Attorneys with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office argued the move was a "transparent attempt" to delay the case by the movie mogul.

Weinstein attorney Arthur Aidala had argued in an Aug. 16 filing that "New York City is the least likely place on earth where Mr. Weinstein could receive a fair trial" on revised charges of rape and sexual assault. The juror pool in Manhattan, they said, had been tainted by close media coverage and public pressure from politicians and activists.

Vance's office responded that such requests are only granted in the "rarest of cases" and that residents of Suffolk and Albany Counties had the same access to media sources as potential jurors in the city.

The filing also faulted Weinstein's attorneys for contributing to much of the media coverage in the case. While Weinstein's legal team was within its rights to give interviews, the attorneys are also "hard pressed to complain about a media frenzy or circus-like atmosphere" that they helped create," Assistant DA Harriett Galvin of the New York County DA's Office wrote in an Aug. 23 submission to the appeals court.

"This motion, lacking in any solid factual or legal basis, should be viewed as a transparent attempt to delay the proceedings, particularly because, from the beginning, the defendant's lawyers have contributed to the media coverage they now complain about by making extrajudicial statements about the case, portraying the defendant as a scapegoat who has been targeted by the 'Me Too' movement, thus employing the well-worn strategy of trying his case outside of the courtroom," she said.

A spokesman for Weinstein said his legal team would not be commenting on the ruling, and a spokesman for Vance's office declined to comment Thursday.

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