Hip-hop impresario and pop cultural influence Russell Simmons, who helped HBO bring its now-revered hot-button series Def Comedy Jam and Def Poetry Jam to the masses, is now suing that very same network for what he says is its “consistently disparaging” treatment of both the truth and his legacy.
In a lawsuit that was filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, he is seeking a jaw-dropping $20 million in damages from HBO, its ex-CEO John Stankey, Warner Bros. Discovery, and the documentarians Amy Ziering and Kirby Dick, who last year made the controversial On the Record. The film zeros in on a handful of women who accused Simmons of sexual harassment, painting a picture something like what Simmons himself says the film is: one that is incomplete, unfair, and deeply damaging.
The nut of Simmons’ complaint? He says significant exculpatory evidence, including CIA-grade polygraph test results and interviews and statements, was “ignored and suppressed.” Those were arguably game-changing material that would have substantially changed the narrative, Simmons and his legal team contend, which was left out intentionally. He accuses the filmmakers of “unscrupulous business practices” and deliberately manufacturing a one-sided film that damaged him emotionally and financially.
The documentary debuted at Sundance in 2020, generating waves before it reached the screens of HBO Max. Oprah Winfrey, for one, withdrew as executive producer at the last minute due to “inconsistencies” in the women’s stories. That was enough to raise eyebrows at the time.
Simmons wants On the Record scrubbed thoroughly from all HBO, Warner Bros., and Discovery platforms. His lawyer, Imran Ansari, contends that its continued availability constitutes a “republication” of defamatory material, i.e., continued harm to Simmons every time someone presses play on the podcast.
Simmons, meanwhile, has quietly paid off several accusers. Although he has been accused of rape by Sil-Lai Abrams, a key voice in the documentary, he has never participated in nonconsensual or criminal sex, he claims. He also insists that not all unpaid element sets are dodged and caught up in legal complexities.
But more than 20 women have emerged with allegations of misconduct stretching back to the 1980s, creating a long shadow over Simmons’ public denials. In the face of this tempest, he is fond of noting the backing of some of the nation’s pre-eminent civil rights leaders and members of Congress who, he charges, encouraged the filmmakers to look at new evidence, which he says was also ignored.
As for HBO, it has not responded to the new suit. But as On the Record continues to make its way worldwide, Simmons wants to ensure people know he hasn’t stopped fighting to retake a legacy he argues has been soiled. Whether this legal battle concludes in vindication or more question marks, Russell Simmons is not going quietly.
0 Comments