New Delhi

Rocker Marilyn Manson has filed a defamation lawsuit against his former fiancee, actress Evan Rachel Wood. The lawsuit was filed on Wednesday at the Los Angeles Superior Court over her allegations that he had sexually and physically abused her during their relationship. 

In his lawsuit, Manson, whose legal name is Brian Warner, alleged that Wood's allegations were fabricated and that she and another woman named as a defendant Illma Gore used false pretences to convince other women to come forward and accuse the rocker of sexual harassment and abuse. Manson also states that Gore and Wood coached women to speak up against Manson. 

Wood and Gore are yet to file a response to the lawsuit. 

Manson and Wood started dating in 2007 and were briefly engaged in 2010 before breaking up.

Advertisment

In 2017, during the peak of #MeToo movement, Wood said she had been raped and abused, and she gave testimony to a Congressional committee in 2018, both without naming anyone. 

In February 2020 in an Instagram post, Wood named Manson, saying he "horrifically abused me for years." 

Following her allegations, several other women came out and spoke of abuse and accused the rocker of sexual assault and rape. Three other women have filed similar lawsuits against Manson. 

Advertisment

Manson was eventually dropped by his record label.  An HBO documentary on the allegations premieres on March 15.