The stars of the 1968 movie “Romeo and Juliet” who have been 15 and 16 years outdated when the film was shot have submitted a lawsuit alleging that Paramount Pictures sexually abused them.
Leonard Whiting, who performed Romeo Montague when he was 16, and Olivia Hussey, who performed Juliet Capulet when she was 15, are suing the studio large for sexual harassment, negligence, intentional tort, fraud, appropriation of identify and likeness, intentional infliction of emotional misery, unfair business practices and little one sexual abuse. The lawsuit, submitted Friday, has but to be formally filed in L.A. Superior Court.
Directed by Italian filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli, the 1968 adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” incorporates a controversial scene.
Per courtroom paperwork reviewed by the Los Angeles Times, the onscreen lovers declare they have been coerced into filming the sequence nude after Zeffirelli initially assured them that “there would be no nudity filmed or exhibited, and that (they) would be wearing flesh-colored undergarments.”
Whiting and Hussey allege that, on the morning of the shoot, Zeffirelli advised them that “they must act in the nude or the Picture would fail” – including that “millions were invested” within the venture and that “they would never work again in any profession, let alone Hollywood” in the event that they did not comply. The little one actors have been allegedly lined with nude physique make-up and “believed they had no choice but to act in the nude … as demanded.”
The criticism additionally notes that Zeffirelli, who died at age 96 in 2019, allegedly confirmed Whiting and Hussey “where the cameras would be set so that no nudity would be filmed or photographed for use in Romeo and Juliet or anywhere else.” The co-stars argue that the studio both knew or “should have known” that photographs of their our bodies “were secretly and unlawfully obtained … for later use by Paramount and others.”
As a results of Zeffirelli and Paramount’s alleged transgressions, Whiting and Hussey say they’ve suffered bodily ache, extreme psychological anguish and emotional misery, in addition to “a lifetime loss” of earnings, employment advantages and job alternatives. They are looking for normal, compensatory and punitive financial and noneconomic damages “believed to be in excess” of $500 million.
“Paramount … authorized, condoned and/or ratified the unlawful conduct by … repackaging what is essentially sensitive and evidence of a crime and then reselling that poisonous product for profit over the objections of Mr. Whiting and Ms. Hussey since 1968,” the lawsuit alleges.
“The knowing and repeated use of sexual images of minor children is the worst of behaviors in our society and must be eradicated.”
“Romeo and Juliet” obtained 4 Academy Award nominations in 1969 for cinematography, costume design, director and finest image. It gained for cinematography and costume design.
A consultant for Paramount didn’t instantly reply Tuesday to the L.A. Times’ request for remark.
