Culture

Marilyn Manson Is Suing Evan Rachel Wood For Defamation, Accusing Her Of Making "False Claims" And Causing Emotional Distress

"Westworld" actress Evan Rachel Wood came forward last year to name Marilyn Manson as the man who allegedly groomed her and abused her for years. In her new docuseries "Phoenix Rising," she shares her experience in great detail.

By Gina Florio1 min read
Evan Rachel Wood Marilyn Manson
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One of Evan's most vivid accounts is from the 2007 music video "Heart-Shaped Glasses (When the Heart Guides the Hand)." She claims that Marilyn had sex with her on camera without her consent. While they were simulating a sex scene, Evan says he "started penetrating me for real."

"I was coerced into a commercial sex act under false pretenses," she said. "That's when the first crime was committed against me, and I was essentially raped on camera." 

Marilyn Manson Is Filing a Defamation Lawsuit Against Evan Rachel Wood

He may be known to the world as Marilyn Manson, but his real name is Brian Warner, and he is filing a defamation suit against Evan for her accusations. His attorney Howard King released a statement denying all the claims that she has made toward him.

"Of all the false claims that Evan Rachel Wood has made about Brian Warner, her imaginative retelling of the making of the 'Heart-Shaped Glasses' music video 15 years ago is the most brazen and easiest to disprove, because there were multiple witnesses," the statement read. "Evan was not only fully coherent and engaged during the three-day shoot but also heavily involved in weeks of pre-production planning and days of post-production editing of the final cut."

"The simulated sex scene took several hours to shoot with multiple takes using different angles and several long breaks in between camera setups," the statement concluded. "Brian did not have sex with Evan on that set, and she knows that is the truth."

The defamation suit was filed on March 3, and the documents also show that Marilyn is suing his ex-fianceé for emotional distress and "impersonation over the internet."

Marilyn shared a brief Instagram post that said, "There will come a time when I can share more about the events of the past year. Until then, I'm going to let the facts speak for themselves: [link in bio]."

The link in his bio takes you to a Google Drive document that contains the defamation lawsuit paperwork against Evan. She has yet to respond.