🐂 Not all bull runs are created equal. November’s AI picks include 5 stocks up +20% eachUnlock Stocks

Actor Vin Diesel hit with sexual battery lawsuit by former assistant

Published 12/21/2023, 07:58 PM
Updated 12/22/2023, 01:15 AM
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Actor Vin Diesel attends a Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) event in the Universal City area of Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 20, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

(Note graphic language in paragraph 7)

By Brad Brooks

(Reuters) - A former assistant to the actor Vin Diesel filed a lawsuit against him on Thursday alleging that he sexually battered her in 2010 and that she was fired from her job just hours later.

In the lawsuit, filed in a Los Angeles court, the former assistant Asta Jonasson alleges that Diesel assaulted her in an Atlanta hotel room while the pair were working on the movie "Fast Five."

Legal and public relations representatives for Diesel did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

"Sexual harassment in the workplace will never stop if powerful men are protected from accountability," Jonasson's lawyer Claire-Lise Kutlay said in a written statement. "We hope her courageous decision to come forward helps create lasting change and empowers other survivors."

In her lawsuit, Jonasson alleges that Diesel forcibly groped her breasts and kissed her after he had spent a night entertaining multiple women in his hotel suite.

"Vin Diesel ignored Ms. Jonasson's clear statements of non-consent to his sexual assaults," the lawsuit reads.

At that point, the lawsuit alleges Diesel forced Jonasson to grab his erect penis, she yelled for him to stop, then he pinned her against a wall and masturbated, only letting her free when he was done. He then left the hotel room.

A few hours later, the lawsuit alleges, Jonasson was fired from her job as assistant to Diesel.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Actor Vin Diesel attends a Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) event in the Universal City area of Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 20, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

The lawsuit said Jonasson remained silent for years "afraid to speak out against one of the world's highest-grossing actors, afraid she would be ostracized from the industry."

Jonasson is one of many women to accuse prominent entertainment industry figures of sexual misconduct since the #MeToo movement began in 2017, in the aftermath of accusations against now-imprisoned movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.