Marilyn Manson has appealed the dismissal of his defamation suit against Evan Rachel Wood and her friend, artist Ilma Gore, claiming the actress forged a document to harm his reputation.
Rolling Stone reports that lawyers for the musician born Brian Warner filed a "lengthy 92-page appeal" in Los Angeles on Tuesday (August 27), which claims Wood and Gore "recruited, pressured and coached others to make heinous, untrue accusations" against him by spreading "falsehoods … hack[ing] his accounts … manufactur[ing] fictitious e-mails; and 'swatt[ing]' his home."
The appeal claims that the allegedly forged letter from a purported FBI agent was made to "create the false appearance that Warner was under FBI investigation and his 'victims' were in danger."
The letter, viewed by Rolling Stone, reads in part, "Ms. Evan Rachel Wood is a key witness in connection to a criminal investigation in Los Angeles, California involving an international and well known public figure … Contact for more information regarding the safety of victims [sic] Human and Sex Trafficking crimes."
Warner's attorneys argue the letter is evidence that Wood and Gore "campaigned" against the musician, and the court should reconsider its decision to throw out portions of Warner's claims against the two.
In May, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Teresa Beaude threw out 10 of Warner's claims against Wood and Gore. After Wood publicly named Warner as her abuser for the first time in 2021, several other women came forward to respectively accuse the musician of sexual, psychological and physical abuse.
Amid the legal battles, Manson is currently touring with a band proud to perform with him.