Goth rock singer Marilyn Manson was always regarded as the ultimate pop-culture villain.
In a US District Court in downtown LA, the British-born actor Esme Bianco is waging a legal battle to prove that his menacing persona was all too real.
The Allegations On Marilyn Manson
Bianco’s suit alleges sexual assault, sexual battery, and human trafficking which began in February 2009. This was when Marilyn Manson flew her to Los Angeles to shoot a new video for his song, “I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies.”
The video never materialized but over the duration of 4 days, she was locked up in a room and beaten with a whip. Manson shocked her with electricity too, in his home back in LA.
The two established a sexual relationship later but she alleged in the lawsuit that she had tolerated several cases of abuse which included forced labor, sleep deprivation, and even rape. Manson also offered to help her secure a US work visa but then threatened to obstruct the process when she failed to meet his demands.
Marilyn Manson, whose legal name is Brian Hugh Warner, has said the claims are “horrible distortions of reality.” His attorney, John Snow, petitioned to dismiss the case at a hearing in August, arguing that Bianco’s claims had expired under California’s statutes of limitations for domestic violence and sexual assault.
Bianco’s suit, the furthest along among four civil suits pending against Manson, could take years to resolve. But it has already changed how the world sees the artist.
