Paula Abdul and former American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe have agreed to settle a lawsuit in which she alleged he sexually assaulted her in the early 2000s when she was a judge on the show, per the AP. Abdul filed a notice of settlement of the case in Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday. It still must be approved by a judge.
- "I am grateful that this chapter has successfully come to a close and is now something I can now put behind me," Abdul said in a statement Friday. "This has been a long and hard-fought personal battle. I hope my experience can serve to inspire other women, facing similar struggles, to overcome their own challenges with dignity and respect, so that they too can turn the page and begin a new chapter of their lives."
The court filing said the settlement was unconditional, but did not reveal the terms, and Abdul's attorney Melissa Eubanks said she could not comment on them. An email seeking comment from attorneys for Lythgoe was not immediately answered. The lawsuit filed nearly a year ago had also accused Lythgoe of sexually assaulting Abdul after she left American Idol and became a judge on Lythgoe's other competition show, So You Think You Can Dance. Lythgoe said at the time that he was "shocked and saddened" by the allegations, which he called "an appalling smear."
After other lawsuits were filed alleging sexual misconduct, Lythgoe stepped down in January from his role as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance. The 75-year-old English-born producer has been a prominent TV producer for decades in both the UK and the US, working on reality competition shows including American Idol. Abdul, a Grammy and Emmy-winning singer and dancer, said in the lawsuit that she remained silent for years about the alleged assaults out of fear of retaliation by "one of the most well-known producers of television competition shows."
story continues below
She alleged that the first sexual assault occurred while Abdul and Lythgoe were on the road filming auditions for an early season of Idol, which premiered in 2002. Abdul says Lythgoe groped her in the elevator of their hotel after a day of filming and "began shoving his tongue down her throat." Abdul pushed him away and ran to her hotel room when the elevator doors opened. "In tears, Abdul quickly called one of her representatives to inform them of the assault," the lawsuit says, "but ultimately decided not to take action for fear that Lythgoe would have her fired."
(More
Paula Abdul stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
