Marilyn Manson drops lawsuit against Evan Rachel Wood, handed hefty legal bill

Evan Rachel Wood and Marilyn Manson - composite red carpet photo — (Image credit: Evan Rachel Wood: Leon Bennett/Getty Images | Marilyn Manson: Kurt Krieger - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

Marilyn Mansion has dropped a lawsuit against Evan Rachel Wood, and been ordered to pay her attorney's fees. Manson originally filed the suit in March 2022, in the wake of Wood's Phoenix Rising documentary, her film about surviving abuse.

Manson's lawsuit alleged that Wood and associate Illma Gore hacked into Manson's computers and social media accounts, manufactured evidence that he was emailing illicit pornography, impersonated an FBI agent, provided checklists of alleged crimes to prospective accusers, and knowingly made false statements and defamatory claims.

"Marilyn Manson – whose real name is Brian Warner – filed a lawsuit against Ms. Wood as a publicity stunt to try to undermine the credibility of his many accusers and revive his faltering career," reads the statement from Wood's legal team. "But his attempt to silence and intimidate Ms. Wood failed. As the trial court correctly found, Warner's claims were meritless. Warner's decision to finally abandon his lawsuit and pay Ms. Wood her full fee award of almost $327,000 only confirms as much."

In March, Manson was ordered to pay Wood's legal fees, but filed an appeal in August. Now Warner has dropped the suit against Wood and Gore, and has agreed to pay their costs.

“After four years of fighting a battle where he was able to tell the truth, Brian is pleased to dismiss his still-pending claims and appeal in order to close the door on this chapter of his life,” says Manson's attorney.

Manson was also accused of abusive behaviour by actress Esmé Bianco, known for her appearances in Game Of Thrones. The 41-year-old sued the musician for sexual, physical and emotional abuse in 2021, before the case was ultimately settled out of court in January 2023.

Late last year, Manson's former personal assistant Ashley Walters had her lawsuit against her former employer reinstated after a court in California upheld her appeal against an earlier ruling that dismissed her claim.

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.