Marilyn Manson withdraws a lawsuit he filed in 2022 against Evan Rachel Wood and Illma Gore. Rolling Stone reports, and Pitchfork can confirm. Manson also agreed to reimburse Wood nearly $327,000 in legal fees, her team says. (A judge ruled earlier this year that he must pay Wood's legal fees.)
In a statement, one of Wood's attorneys, Michael J. Kump, said: “Marilyn Manson – whose real name is Brian Warner – filed a lawsuit against Ms. Wood as a publicity stunt to try to undermine the credibility of many his accusers and revive his faltering career. But his attempt to silence and intimidate Mrs Wood failed. As the trial court correctly found, Warner's allegations were without merit. Warner's decision to permanently drop his lawsuit and pay Ms. Wood the full amount of her fee of nearly $327,000 confirms as much.”
When reached by Pitchfork, Manson's attorney Howard E. King said, “After a four-year battle where he was able to tell the truth, Brian is pleased to drop his pending claims and appeal to close the door in this chapter of his life.”
In his original complaint, Marilyn Manson alleged that Evan Rachel Wood and Ilma Gore (described as Wood's “on-again, off-again romantic partner”) conspired to publicly paint him “as a rapist and a thug—a malicious lie that derailed Warner's. successful career in music, television and film.' He also claimed that Gore, in particular, defamed him with statements she made on the set of his “Groupie” music video.
Elsewhere in the lawsuit, Manson alleged that Wood and Gore “secretly recruited, coordinated and pressured would-be accusers to come forward simultaneously with rape and abuse allegations against Warner.” In addition, he said Wood and Gore impersonated an FBI agent “to create the false appearance that Warner's alleged 'victims' and their families were in danger and that there was an ongoing federal criminal investigation into Warner.”
Last year, a judge threw out some of Manson's claims, including his claim that Wood and Gore recruited women to frame him for wrongdoing.
Evan Rachel Wood publicly named Marilyn Manson as her alleged abuser in 2021, claiming the musician groomed and “abused her horribly” for years. She spoke further about her alleged experiences with Manson on Phoenix Rising documentary, alleging that he tortured and “virtually raped” her during the filming of a music video.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault or domestic abuse, we encourage you to reach out for support:
National Sexual Assault Hotline RAINN
https://www.rainn.org
1 800 656 HOPE (4673)
Crisis text line
SMS: Text “HELLO” or “HOLA” to 741-741
The National Domestic Violence Hotline
https://thehotline.org
1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
from our partners at https://pitchfork.com/news/marilyn-manson-drops-lawsuit-against-evan-rachel-wood-agrees-to-pay-legal-fees
