Update: As E! News reports, Nigel Lythgoe is speaking out after Paula Abdul accused him of sexual assault.
“To say that I am shocked and saddened by the allegations made against me by Paula Abdul is a wild understatement. For more than two decades, Paula and I have interacted as dear—and entirely platonic—friends and colleagues. Yesterday, however, out of the blue, I learned of these claims in the press and I want to be clear: not only are they false, they are deeply offensive to me and to everything I stand for. [I] can’t pretend to understand exactly why she would file a lawsuit that she must know is untrue. But I can promise that I will fight this appalling smear with everything I have.”
Paula Abdul fans are shocked and saddened by the news of the lawsuit she filed against Nigel Lythgoe.
Some may know Nigel Lythgoe as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, but he is also an executive producer of American Idol. You may recall, Abdul was one of the original judges on American Idol and also judge So You Think You Can Dance for some time as well.
Now, in Paula’s lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, the singer and dancer claims that Nigel sexually assaulted her multiple times during her time working with him. The suit was filed in LA County on December 29.
Abdul is suing Nigel, 19 Entertainment, and FremantleMedia North America for “sexual assault and battery, sexual harassment, gender violence and negligence,” TMZ reports.
According to TMZ, the documents filed by Abdul claim that the first time she was sexually assaulted by Nigel was “during one of Idol’s initial seasons.” She explained that the assault happened while they were “on the road for regional auditions.”
As TMZ reports, Abdul alleges that Nigel assaulted her in an elevator of the hotel they were staying at. She says when the doors to the elevators closed, Nigel pushed her up against a wall and fondled her by “grabbing her genitals and breast” before trying “to tongue-kiss her.”
Abdul continues, saying that she tried to reject Nigel’s advances by pushing him away. She then ran into her hotel room once the doors to the elevator opened.
After getting inside her room, Abdul alleges she immediately told one of the reps on her team. However, because she feared she would be fired, she made the decision to keep the alleged incident quiet.
According to TMZ, Abdul continues to say that Nigel sexually assaulted her again in 2015, after signing a contract with So You Think You Can Dance.
Abdul alleges that Nigel invited her to his house “to discuss work opportunities” and admitted she accepted the invitation because she thought it would be professional. But to Abdul’s surprise, Nigel again reportedly “forced himself on top of her while she was on a couch and tried to kiss her.”
TMZ reports that Abdul claims Nigel would tell her they would make “an excellent power couple” but Abdul told him she wasn’t interested and pushed Nigel off of her before leaving his house.
Abdul’s allegations only grow more disturbing after she claims Nigel would taunt her about the assaults by calling her “saying they should celebrate because it has been seven years and the statute of limitations had run.”
But now, because of California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover Up Accountability Act, Abdul has decided to no longer remain silent.
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