Marilyn Manson took some hits Tuesday when a judge tossed out portions of his defamation lawsuit against ex Evan Rachel Wood.
Judge Teresa Beaudet dismissed, among other claims, Manson’s allegation that Wood “recruited, coordinated, and pressured” women to make false statements about him.
A lawyer representing Wood said in a statement to reporters that the judge’s ruling “affirms and protects Evan’s exercise of her fundamental First Amendment rights” but Manson’s lawyer said the ruling was “disappointing” and will be appealed.
Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, sued Wood in Los Angeles Superior Court in March 2022, alleging defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The lawsuit calls Wood’s allegation of physical and sexual abuse a “malicious falsehood” that has derailed his career.
Manson accused Wood of recruiting “prospective accusers to emerge simultaneously with allegations of rape and abuse … and brazenly claim that it took ten or more years to ‘realize’ their consensual relationships with [Manson] were supposedly abusive.”
Marilyn Manson: iHeartRadio Music News Coverage
Wood, who went public with allegations of abuse against Manson in 2021, has not taken legal action against him but he was subsequently sued by actress Esmé Bianco and his former assistant Ashley Walters. Bianco’s case was settled and Walters’ was dismissed in January.
Last year, Wood said is “steady as a rock” in the face of Manson’s defamation lawsuit. “I am not scared,” she said on The View. “I am sad, because this is how it works. This is what pretty much every survivor that tries to expose someone in a position of power goes though, and this is part of the retaliation that keeps survivors quiet. This is why people don’t want to come forward. This was expected.”
Wood said she is “very confident” she has truth on her side.
(Manson dismissed the claims as "horrible distortions of reality" and insisted "my intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners.”)
A trial is tentatively set to begin next May.