Photo credit: Andreas Lawen / CC from 4.0
A California judge has dismissed many of the claims in Marilyn Manson’s defamation lawsuit against Evan Rachel Wood.
The shock rocker sued the actress over her allegations of abuse during the couple’s relationship. However, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Teresa A. Beaudet granted Wood’s special motion to dismiss many parts of the defamation lawsuit on anti-SLAPP grounds and the protection of individuals’ free speech.
The defamation lawsuit can proceed on the remaining counts, but many of the biggest allegations are dead. “The verdict is disappointing but not unexpected,” said Marilyn Manson’s attorney Howard King told meeting. “The court made this finding when it refused to consider former plaintiff Ashley Smithline’s affidavit, which detailed how women were systematically pressured by Evan Rachel Wood and Illma Gore to make false claims about Brian Warner .”
“The failure to admit this crucial evidence, as well as the court’s decision not to consider Ms. Gore’s iPad, the contents of which showed her and Ms. Wood authoring a fake FBI letter, will be the subject of an immediate appeal to the California court. “Court of Appeals,” the letter said.
Evan Rachel Wood took to social media in 2021 to publicly shame Marilyn Manson for what she describes as a pattern of horrific abuse and behavior. Wood was 19 when she and Manson became a couple. In 2017, she testified before a congressional committee that she had been raped and repeatedly abused, but did not identify her abuser at the time. Following the public allegation, Marilyn Manson was fired from his record label, lost television appearances and was not represented by the CAA.
Actress Esme Bianco settled her two-year sexual harassment case against the shock rocker in February 2022. The results of this settlement are unknown. The lawsuit Manson has filed against Wood primarily relates to allegations made in the two-part documentary Phoenix Rising. The documentary follows Manson’s experience of abuse and violence and premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.