Byline: Jen Yamato, Los Angeles Times, (TNS)
LOS ANGELES — Paula Abdul accused American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance executive producer Nigel Lythgoe of sexual assault in a lawsuit filed on December 29, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Abdul, who appeared as a judge on American Idol from 2002 to 2009 and on dance competition SYTYCD from 2015 to 2016, alleges that boss and on-air costar Lythgoe sexually assaulted her twice during her tenures on his shows, according to multiple reports. She also alleges that she suffered bullying and harassment and gender pay discrimination while serving as a prominent public face of the hit shows.
According to the suit, the first alleged assault occurred in a hotel elevator in the 2000s while Abdul, 61, and Lythgoe, 74, were on the road filming an early season of American Idol, Deadline reported. Abdul alleges that the executive producer "shoved her against a wall, grabbed her genitals and breasts, and began shoving his tongue down her throat," before she escaped and reported the incident to her representatives.
The second assault is alleged to have occurred in 2015 when Abdul appeared as a season 12 judge on So You Think You Can Dance alongside executive producer and co-creator Lythgoe. Abdul alleges that she was invited to what she believed was a professional dinner at Lythgoe's home, only for Lythgoe to force himself on her as she sat on his couch before she pushed him off and fled.
Abdul alleges that she additionally witnessed Lythgoe grope her assistant without her consent during filming of So You Think You Can Dance that year, according to Variety, and that she feared retaliation should she speak out. According to the lawsuit, Abdul's contracts on the shows barred her from disclosing confidential or derogatory information about other judges, hosts, or producers.
The lawsuit names as defendants Lythgoe and production companies 19 Entertainment, FremantleMedia North America, American Idol Productions, and Dance Nation Productions on counts of sexual assault/battery, sexual harassment, gender violence, and negligence.
"Forever Your Girl" singer, dancer and choreographer Abdul rose to fame in the 1980s before building a second career in TV with her popular appearances on shows including American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, and Dancing With the Stars. In 2009, the veteran judge announced her departure from Idol following reports of tension amid contractual negotiations over her compensation.
Abdul's lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court under the 2023 Sexual Abuse and Cover Up Accountability Act, which allowed limited windows for certain civil sexual abuse claims otherwise outside of the statute of limitations to be filed. Representatives for Abdul and Lythgoe did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Other recent high-profile lawsuits filed under the act have levied sexual assault allegations against Jermaine Jackson and former Recording Academy chief Mike Greene, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Antonio "L.A." Reid, and Aerosmith's Steven Tyler have been sued under a similar New York law.
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