‘Romeo and Juliet’ stars sue studio for child abuse

They are seeking damages “believed to be in excess of US$500 million” (more than R$2.5 billion at current exchange rates)

Actress Olivia Hussey and actor Leonard Whiting, stars of the most famous film version of Romeo and Juliet, released in 1968, sued the Paramount studio on charges of child abuse, due to the filming and use of nude images of the two in the film, when they were minors. They are seeking compensation “believed to exceed US$500 million” (over R$2.5 billion at current exchange rates).

The lawsuit was filed last Friday (12/30) in the courthouse in Santa Monica, California. Hussey and Whiting, now over 70, accuse Paramount of sexually exploiting them.

Directed by Franco Zeffirelli, ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was a huge success upon release and received four Academy Award nominations. But the film was also the subject of controversy due to a scene where Whiting’s buttocks and Hussey’s breasts can be seen. They were 16 and 15 years old respectively at the time.

The actors say they have suffered from mental anguish and emotional distress in the 55 years since the film’s release and have lost job opportunities as a result. Despite their remarkable performances, the two had relatively short careers after ‘Romeo and Juliet’.

The process

The couple claim that Zeffirelli – who died in 2019 – had assured the actors that there would be no nudity in the film and that they would use some sort of protection in that scene in question. However, in the last days of shooting, the director allegedly begged the two to shoot the scene naked, “or the film would be a failure”. They also said that the director showed them where the camera would be placed and ensured that no nudity would be caught in the pictures and shown in the film.

Thus, the lawsuit alleges that the director was dishonest and that, as a result, Whiting and Hussey were filmed naked without their consent.

“What they heard and what happened are two different things,” said Tony Marinozzi, the actors’ manager. “They trusted Franco. At 16, as actors, they thought he wasn’t going to violate the trust they had. Franco was their friend, and frankly, at 16, what were they going to do? There were no options. There was no #MeToo . “

“Images of naked minors are illegal and should not be shown,” said the actors’ attorney, Solomon Gresen. “They were very young, naïve kids in the ’60s who didn’t understand what was going to hit them. Suddenly they were famous on a level they never expected, and on top of that they were raped in a way they didn’t know how to handle.”

The lawsuit is now being filed because a California law lifted the statute of limitations for old child sexual abuse allegations. Since this initiative, the courts have seen an increase in charges against the Boy Scouts of America association and against the Catholic Church, among other organizations.

Paramount has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.

In a 2018 interview with Variety, Hussey defended the nude scene. “Nobody my age had ever done that before,” he told her, adding that Zeffirelli filmed it all with gusto. “It was necessary for the film.”

In another 2018 interview with Fox News, he said that the scene was “taboo” in America, but that nudity was already commonplace in European films at the time. “It wasn’t a big deal,” she said. “And Leonard wasn’t shy at all! Halfway through filming, I completely forgot I wasn’t wearing any clothes.”

Below is the trailer and a making of the original film.

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Source: Terra

Larkin

Amanda Larkin is a celebrity journalist at Gossipify, known for her in-depth interviews and unique perspectives on the entertainment industry. She covers celebrity news and gossip, providing readers with engaging and informative content, and understanding of the inner workings of the industry. She’s respected for keeping readers up to date with the latest trends and providing a fresh perspective on the celebrity world.