Marilyn Manson has abandoned a 2022 lawsuit filed against ex-fiancée Evan Rachel Wood that accused her of defamation and emotional distress.
According to legal documents obtained by Us Weekly on Tuesday, November 26, Manson, real name Brian Warner, has also agreed to pay approximately $327,000 to cover attorney fees accumulated by Wood, 37.
Manson filed the lawsuit on March 2, 2022, a few weeks prior to the release of HBO’s Phoenix Rising documentary miniseries which included Wood’s allegations of rape and sexual abuse against Manson during their three-year relationship.
In light of Manson’s lawsuit dismissal, legal representatives for Wood shared a statement with Us on Tuesday. “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 his many accusers and revive his faltering career. But his attempt to silence and intimidate Ms. Wood failed,” the statement read. “As the trial court correctly found, Warner’s claims were meritless. Warner’s decision to finally abandon his lawsuit and pay Ms. Wood her full fee award of almost $327,000 only confirms as much.”
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The statement also detailed that Manson’s lawsuit accused Wood of “defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress,” alleging that she “orchestrated a campaign to cast him as a rapist and destroy his career.”
Wood responded at the time by “seeking to strike the bulk,” per the statement, of Manson’s lawsuit, and in 2023, the court sided with Wood, ruling that “Manson’s claims lack merit.”
Earlier this year, the court ordered Manson to reimburse Wood the specified legal fees. Wood was represented in the legal battle by Michael Kump, Shawn Holley and Katherine Kleindienst of Los Angeles’ Kinsella Holley Iser Kump Steinsapir LLP.
An attorney for Manson, Howard King, told Rolling Stone in a statement on Tuesday, “After four years of fighting a battle where he was able to tell the truth, Brian is pleased to dismiss his still-pending claims and appeal in order to close the door on this chapter of his life.”
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Wood accused Manson, her ex-fiancé, of grooming and abusing her for several years during their tumultuous relationship. The pair began dating in 2007 and got engaged in January 2010. The engagement was called off seven months later.
“The name of my abuser is Brian Warner, also known to the world as Marilyn Manson,” Wood claimed via Instagram in February 2021. “He started grooming me when I was a teenager and horrifically abused me for years. I was brainwashed and manipulated into submission.”
Wood also claimed in the post that she decided to speak out because she was “done living in fear of retaliation, slander, or blackmail,” adding, “I am here to expose this dangerous man and call out the many industries that have enabled him, before he ruins any more lives. I stand with the many victims who will no longer be silent.”
The actress’ social media reveal came after she alleged to Rolling Stone in November 2016 that she had been raped twice in the past, once by a “significant other” and later by “the owner of a bar.”
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Manson did not publicly address the allegations made in 2016, but in November 2020, he hung up his phone during an interview with Metal Hammer after a journalist from the magazine asked whether he was the ex who had abused Wood.
The singer’s rep later issued a statement, which read in part, “Unfortunately, we live in a time where people believe what they read on the internet and feel free to say what they want with no actual evidence. The effects can be catastrophic and promoting non-fact-based information is wholly irresponsible.” (Manson did not publicly comment on the 2021 allegations made by Wood.)
In February 2018, Wood testified before the United States House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security that she was a domestic violence and rape survivor.
If you or anyone you know has been sexually abused, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). A trained staff member will provide confidential, judgment-free support as well as local resources to assist in healing, recovering and more.
