Photograph of Marilyn Manson during the Mechanical Animals era

Credit: Far Out / Patrick Whitaker

Judge throws out defamation claims against Evan Rachel Wood by Marilyn Manson

Wed 10 May 2023 9:45, UK

Judge Teresa Beaudet has thrown out multiple defamation claims made against Evan Rachel Wood by American rock musician Marilyn Manson, including his suit that Wood “recruited, coordinated, and pressured” women to make false statements about him. With a potential trial date set for May 1st, 2024, Manson’s lawyer has outlined plans for an appeal, which will most likely push the date back. As it stands, several claims on Manson’s original lawsuit remain pending.

In a statement, Evan Rachel Wood’s attorney Michael Kump said: “We are very pleased with the Court’s ruling, which affirms and protects Evan’s exercise of her fundamental First Amendment rights. As the Court correctly found, Plaintiff failed to show that his claims against her have even minimal merit.”

Meanwhile, Manson’s attorney Howard King said that the ruling was “disappointing but not unexpected. He added: “The Court telegraphed this outcome when it refused to consider the bombshell sworn declaration of former plaintiff Ashley Smithline, which detailed how women were systematically pressured by Evan Rachel Wood and Illma Gore to make false claims about Brian Warner”.

In his original lawsuit, Manson claimed that Wood and Illma Gore “secretly recruited, coordinated, and pressured prospective accusers to emerge simultaneously with allegations of rape and abuse against Warner” and “provided checklists and scripts to prospective accusers, listing the specific alleged acts of abuse that they should claim against Warner.”

Forecasting the appeal, King had this to say: “The failure to admit this critical evidence, along with the Court’s decision to not consider Ms. Gore’s iPad, the contents of which demonstrated how she and Ms. Wood crafted a forged FBI letter, will be the subject of an immediate appeal to the California Court of Appeal.”