A year after she initially sued him for sexual assault, according to court documents, Paula Abdul and former American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe have agreed to a private settlement.
Though the details of the settlement were not disclosed in the paperwork, in a statement to Rolling Stone, the superstar singer.dancer said she was “grateful that this chapter has successfully come to a close and is now something I can now put behind me,” adding “This has been a long and hard-fought personal battle.” “I hope my experience can serve to inspire other women, facing similar struggles, to overcome their own challenges with dignity and respect, so that they too can turn the page and begin a new chapter of their lives.”
In his own statement Lythgoe said “We live in a troubling time where a person is now automatically assumed to be guilty until proven innocent, a process that can take years.” “That is why, like Paula, I am glad to be able to put this behind me. I know the truth and that gives me great comfort.”
Alleging that Lythgoe assaulted her during the shooting of one of American Idol’s initial seasons in the early 2000s, and again in 2014 when she was a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, Abdul sued Lythgoe at the end of 2023 claiming that “Lythgoe shoved [her] against the wall, then grabbed her genitals and breasts, and began shoving his tongue down her throat.” Abdul alleged that Lythgoe assaulted her in a hotel elevator during the first incident.
Paula also sued the American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance production companies, but settled with them back in April.
Abdul claimed that the second assault took place when she attended what she believed to be a “professional invitation” for dinner. The suit alleged that “Lythgoe forced himself on top of Abdul while she was seated on his couch and attempted to kiss her while proclaiming that the two would make an excellent ‘power couple,”
Calling them “a smear campaign,” Lythgoe vehemently denied the allegations, stating:
“To say that I am shocked and saddened by the allegations made against me by Paula Abdul is a wild understatement.” “For more than two decades, Paula and I have interacted as dear — and entirely platonic — friends and colleagues. Yesterday, however, out of the blue, I learned of these claims in the press and I want to be clear: Not only are they false, they are deeply offensive to me and to everything I stand for.”
Following Abdul’s initial lawsuit against Lythgoe, four more women came forward anonymously as Jane Does with sexual abuse allegations as well. Two women who were on All American Girl television show sued in January, a third sued in February on allegations that Lythgoe sexually assaulted her in a car in 2016, and a fourth alleged in March that he sexually assaulted her at his home in 2018.
Lythgoe was dismissed from the suit brought by the All American Girl contestants back in July, staring “Today was a good day.” . “We’ve always said that these claims were meritless and now the court has agreed. I hope and expect that this will be the first of many similar wins as I continue to fight to clear my name.”
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Alyssa Kristine