Game of Thrones actress Esmé Bianco has sued Marilyn Manson and former manager Tony Ciulla, alleging that the singer raped and sexually battered her and that the pair violated human trafficking laws by bringing her from London to Los Angeles under false pretenses, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by SPIN. TMZ was first to report on the lawsuit.
The complaint was filed April 30 in the United States District Court for the Central District of California.
Bianco, along with Evan Rachel Wood, was one of more than a dozen women to speak out against Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, earlier this year. SPIN covered those allegations, as well as Manson’s statement denying them.
The lawsuit says that “Mr. Warner used drugs, force, and threats of force to coerce sexual acts from Ms. Bianco on multiple occasions. Mr. Warner raped Ms. Bianco in or around May 2011.”
It goes on to allege that Warner “committed sexual acts” with Bianco at times when she was unable to consent, and said those acts included “spanking, biting, cutting, and whipping Ms. Bianco’s buttocks, breasts, and genitals for Mr. Warner’s sexual gratification — all without the consent of Plaintiff.”
Additionally, the suit says, “Perhaps most horrifyingly, Mr. Warner locked Ms. Bianco in the bedroom, tied her to a prayer kneeler, and beat her with a whip that Mr. Warner said was utilized by the Nazis. He also electrocuted her.”
The suit continues by alleging that Warner and Ciulla violated the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and that the singer and his manager engaged in by employing fraud to lure British subject Bianco to the United States to appear in a music video for Manson’s “I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies” and a never-made horror film based on the works of Lewis Carroll called Phantasmagoria.
The complaint says that Manson “promised work opportunities that never appeared while inserting himself in her visa process [and] was able to control Bianco by threatening to withdraw support if she displeased him.”
It also says “Mr. Warner’s former assistants discussed Mr. Warner’s abuse directly with Mr. Ciulla,” the suit claims. “Mr. Warner’s management had a vested interest in supporting his violent tendencies to encourage the creation of his ‘art’ and the promotion of the brand of Marilyn Manson, and were complicit in Mr. Warner’s abuse of Ms. Bianco.
Ciulla represented Warner for more than 25 years before cutting ties with him in February following the assault allegations. Additionally, Manson’s record label, Loma Vista, booking agent CAA and the TV shows American Gods and Creepshow dropped him as well.
Ciulla didn’t immediately respond to SPIN’s request for comment.
In a statement obtained by SPIN, Blanco said the following:
As millions of survivors like myself are painfully aware, our legal system is far from perfect. This is why I co-created the Phoenix Act, a law which gives precious additional healing time to thousands of domestic violence survivors. But while I fight for a more just legal system, I am also pursuing my right to demand my abuser be held to account, using every avenue available to me.
For far too long my abuser has been left unchecked, enabled by money, fame and an industry that turned a blind eye. Despite the numerous brave women who have spoken out against Marilyn Manson, countless survivors remain silenced, and some of their voices will never be heard. My hope is that by raising mine I will help to stop Brian Warner from shattering any more lives and empower other victims to seek their own small measure of justice.
In an interview with The Cut, Bianco described the singer as a “monster who almost destroyed me and almost destroyed so many women.” “He’s told the world time and time again, ‘This is who I am,’” she said. “He hid in plain sight.”
