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Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA developer announced plans Monday to build a studio facility with 16 soundstages in the heart of the Los Angeles Arts District.East End Studios filed an application to construct the facility, which also includes four office buildings, on a 15-acre site at the corner of 6th and Alameda streets. The announcement comes amid a boom in development of new production facilities in L.A., to keep up with demand fueled by broadcast TV and streaming services.The East End project is expected to take about four years to complete — two years for development approvals and two years for construction.Paul Audley, the president of FilmLA, said he hoped the project — and others in the planning stages — could move quickly. He said that in the past, L.A.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA Los Angeles judge on Monday ruled to limit the amount of information that could be obtained by Harvey Weinstein’s defense team for his upcoming trial on 11 counts of rape and sexual assault.Judge Lisa B. Lench approved the prosecution’s motion to quash subpoenas from four witnesses for their correspondence, including personal emails and texts dating as far back as 2004, with one of the alleged victims (referred to as Jane Doe #4).

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge in Santa Maria, Calif., on Tuesday dismissed a rape case against film producer David Guillod, weeks after another judge threw out most of the charges against him.Guillod was accused of raping or sexually assaulting six women, including actress Jessica Barth. But after a 10-day preliminary hearing in May, Judge James K. Voysey found that the accusations of four of the women were not credible enough to go to trial.Voysey took note of text messages in which one alleged victim said, after the alleged rape, that she was looking forward to “dinner and some cuddles” with Guillod.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA Virginia judge on Tuesday denied Johnny Depp’s motion to dismiss Amber Heard’s counterclaim, ruling that the issue should be decided by the jury.The counterclaim alleges that Depp’s attorney, Adam Waldman, defamed Heard and damaged her career when he accused her and her friends of perpetrating an “abuse hoax.” Heard’s side rested their case Tuesday morning, prompting Depp’s team to make the routine motion to dismiss the claim.Depp’s attorney, Ben Chew, argued that Waldman was offering his opinion, and that therefore he cannot have committed defamation. Chew also argued that there is no evidence that Depp saw or knew about Waldman’s statements until the counterclaim was filed.“He did believe, and will to his dying day, that Ms. Heard’s claims of abuse were patently false,” Chew said.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association sued the organization on Wednesday, claiming he was sexually harassed and called a “terrorist” and an “angry Arab” by members of the group.Husam “Sam” Asi is a presenter on BBC Arabic, and has been a member of the HFPA since 2010. He was put on probation in February after The Wrap reported that three women had accused him of sexual misconduct.In the lawsuit, Asi says that the allegations against him are false, and that they were “weaponized” by the HFPA to retaliate against him for holding the leadership accountable.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA Los Angeles judge ruled on Wednesday that five additional witnesses will be allowed to testify against Harvey Weinstein at his upcoming rape trial, but excluded testimony from actresses Rose McGowan and Daryl Hannah.Prosecutors wanted to call 15 witnesses to testify about the producer’s “prior bad acts,” but the judge excluded 10 of them.The judge will also allow jurors to be told of Weinstein’s New York conviction involving the sexual assault of Miriam Haley, though Haley will not be called to testify in Los Angeles.Weinstein is facing 11 counts of rape and sexual assault pertaining to five alleged victims. The prosecution wants to call the additional witnesses to show that Weinstein had a propensity to commit sex crimes.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA psychologist told jurors Tuesday that Amber Heard suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder due to physical and sexual abuse at the hands of ex-husband Johnny Depp.Dawn Hughes testified that she had diagnosed Heard after examining her for 29 hours and reviewing therapy records, and that she had concluded that Depp engaged in a “high degree of violence.” Hughes recounted numerous instances of alleged sexual violence, which she said were motivated by Depp’s “obsessive jealousy” and a desire to show dominance.Hughes was the first witness called by Heard’s attorneys, as they began their defense in a $50 million defamation trial in Fairfax, Va. They are seeking to counter the image presented by Depp’s lawyers, who portrayed Heard as the abuser in their relationship, and maintained that Depp would retreat whenever she instigated fights.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge refused to dismiss Johnny Depp’s defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, as the high-profile trial reached its midpoint on Tuesday.Depp is arguing that Heard cost him tens of millions of dollars — and his role in the sixth “Pirates of the Caribbean” film — when she published an op-ed reviving her domestic violence allegations against him. The trial has been underway since April 11 in Fairfax, Va.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA doctor and a nurse recounted the hunt for Johnny Depp’s severed fingertip, as testimony continued on Monday in his $50 million defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard.Depp suffered the injury in March 2015, while he was in Australia for the filming of the fifth installment of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. Depp has accused Heard of throwing a bottle at him, severing the top of his middle finger.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA therapist who worked with Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in 2015 testified that the couple engaged in “mutual abuse,” and that Depp could be “triggered” by Heard.Laurel Avis Anderson’s testimony was played for jurors on the third day of the $50 million defamation trial underway in Fairfax, Va. Depp has sued Heard for publishing an op-ed in 2018 in which she alluded to domestic violence claims that she first made in the context of their 2016 divorce.Anderson testified via video deposition in February, and the video was played for the jury on Thursday morning. Anderson said she saw the couple several times between October and December 2015, and that the sessions could be stormy — with both of them threatening to walk out at times.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Wednesday ruled that several producers of “The Walking Dead” were not cheated out of profits by AMC Networks, bringing the long-running litigation over the hit show closer to a finale.Judge Daniel J. Buckley rejected the producers’ claim that AMC Networks had reverse-engineered the definition of “profits” in their contracts in order to keep the vast majority of the show’s profits for itself.The producers — Robert Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, David Alpert, Charles Eglee and Glen Mazzara — first filed suit in 2017, four years after the show’s creator Frank Darabont — who was fired after the first season — filed a similar claim against AMC.Darabont and CAA, his agency, won a $200 million settlement in their case last July.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA media consultant claims in a new lawsuit that Endeavor stole his unsolicited ideas on how to pitch itself to Wall Street, and that his concepts are single-handedly responsible for saving the company from ruin.David Carde, who describes himself as a consultant in the media and technology sectors, alleges that in September 2019 his attorney emailed an 11-page analysis to Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel and to Ari Greenburg, the president of WME. He apparently never received a response.At the time, Endeavor was making its first effort to launch an IPO.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA limousine driver testified on Wednesday about working for Harvey Weinstein, making him the first witness to take the stand for the producer’s upcoming Los Angeles trial.Alfred “Freddy” Baroth was called to testify early because L.A. prosecutors worry that his health could prevent him from appearing at the trial, which has not been scheduled and remains at least several months away.Baroth’s testimony referred largely to trip records and invoices that established Weinstein’s presence in the city on various dates in 2010 and 2013. Weinstein is facing 11 counts of rape and sexual assault in incidents involving five women between 2004 and 2013.Weinstein appeared in a wheelchair, wearing a mask and a jail jumpsuit, and clutching a paperback copy of the bestselling novel “All the Light We Cannot See.” Netflix is currently adapting the book as a limited series.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Thursday refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a Russian chess master who alleged that she was defamed in an episode of the Netflix series “The Queen’s Gambit.”Nona Gaprindashvili, who rose to prominence as a chess player in the Soviet Union in the 1960s, sued Netflix in federal court in September. She took issue with a line in the series in which a character stated — falsely — that Gaprindashvili had “never faced men.” Gaprindashvili argued that the line was “grossly sexist and belittling,” noting that she had in fact faced 59 male competitors by 1968, the year in which the series was set.Netflix sought to have the suit dismissed, arguing that the show is a work of fiction, and that the First Amendment gives show creators broad artistic license.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA federal judge has dismissed Rose McGowan’s racketeering lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein and his lawyers, after McGowan fired her attorneys and missed a court-ordered briefing deadline.McGowan was one of the first people to go public with allegations of sexual assault against Weinstein in late 2016 and 2017, triggering an avalanche of similar allegations that sparked the #MeToo movement and landed the former producer in prison.In October 2019, McGowan filed a

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA producer on “Rust” is backing another independent film, “Sam & Kate,” starring Dustin Hoffman and Sissy Spacek, which is set to begin production early next year.Ryan Smith is helping to finance the film, which is set to shoot in Thomasville, Ga., starting in mid-February.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA crew member told Variety that he warned the producers of “Rust” that Dave Halls, the first assistant director, was cavalier about set safety during a previous production.Halls has admitted to investigators that he failed to properly check a gun before handing it to Alec Baldwin on the set of “Rust” on Oct. 21.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA producer on the E! reality show “The Bradshaw Bunch” has filed a gender discrimination suit, alleging that he was fired because the network wanted a “female voice” in his job.Michael Call worked as a co-executive producer on the first season of the unscripted series, which chronicles the home life of NFL Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA woman has filed a sexual abuse lawsuit against Bob Dylan, alleging that the singer-songwriter sexually abused her in 1965, when she was 12 years old.The suit alleges that Dylan gave her drugs and alcohol, and established an emotional connection that allowed him to sexually abuse her for a period of several weeks.The woman is identified only as J.C. in the complaint, which doesn’t go into significant detail.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge ruled on Monday that former prosecutor Linda Fairstein has a plausible claim that she was defamed by “When They See Us,” the Netflix series from Ava DuVernay about the Central Park Five case.Fairstein sued Netflix, DuVernay and writer Attica Locke in March 2020, alleging that the four-part series portrayed her as a “racist, unethical villain” who framed five young men for a brutal rape and beating.Netflix had argued that the show was protected by the

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA California film producer was arrested on Thursday on charges that he used his production company, PaperChase Films, as a front for an international prostitution ring.Dillon Jordan, who produced “Skin” and “The Kindergarten Teacher,” was indicted last month on prostitution and money laundering charges.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Friday ordered “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson to stand trial on charges that he raped three women nearly 20 years ago.Masterson faces up to 45 years to life in prison if convicted on all three charges. Each of the three women testified at a preliminary hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court, which began on Tuesday.Judge Charlaine F.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA federal judge ruled Monday that a man who claims Kevin Spacey sexually assaulted him when he was 14 years old must reveal his name in order to proceed with a lawsuit.The man, now in his 50s, has already indicated to the court that he would drop the suit if forced to reveal his name.The man, who is identified in the complaint as C.D., filed suit last September, after the state of New York temporarily suspended the statute of limitations for such cases.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Monday ruled that Michael Jackson’s companies had no legal obligation to protect boys from sexual abuse, and dismissed a long-running lawsuit against them.Wade Robson, one of the subjects of the 2019 HBO documentary “Leaving Neverland,” first filed the lawsuit in 2013.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge has ruled against one of Hollywood’s top business management firms, blocking it from enforcing a non-compete agreement against a former partner.The case involves a high-stakes fight within NKSFB, which provides accounting and business management services to Hollywood stars, athletes and musicians.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge has rejected a copyright lawsuit that claimed that Marshmello’s 2018 hit “Happier” infringed on an earlier song.Arty, a Russian DJ whose legal name is Artem Stoliarov, filed suit in 2019, claiming that Marshmello’s song ripped off the synthesizer melody from his 2014 remix of the song “I Lived.”Arty was represented by Richard Busch, the attorney who represented the family of Marvin Gaye in the famous “Blurred Lines” case.In a ruling on Thursday, U.S.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA crew member sued Universal Television on Friday, alleging that he was fired from an HBO Max show after coming down with COVID-19.William Pavlu was working as a chief rigging technician on an untitled comedy starring Jean Smart. In the suit, he says he felt ill on the morning of Dec.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Norwegian reporter who accused the Hollywood Foreign Press Association of freezing her out of access to celebrity interviews.Kjersti Flaa sued the organization last August, saying that she had been repeatedly denied membership.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA woman turned in Lady Gaga’s two French bulldogs at a Los Angeles police station on Friday night, two days after they were stolen in a brazen armed robbery in Hollywood.Lady Gaga’s dogwalker, Ryan Fischer, was shot once while struggling with the robbers on Wednesday night. He is in stable condition, according to police.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Wednesday ruled that Randall Miller did not violate his probation when he shot a film in 2019, but warned the director not to make any more films for the remainder of his sentence.Judge Anthony Harrison sentenced Miller in 2015 to a year in jail in connection with the February 2014 death of camera assistant Sarah Jones on the set of the film “Midnight Rider” near Jesup, Ga.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA probate judge on Thursday overruled Jamie Spears’ objections to an order establishing Bessemer Trust Co. as a co-conservator of Britney Spears’ estate.Judge Brenda Penny appointed Bessemer as co-conservator along with Jamie Spears on Nov.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA Delaware judge has allowed CBS stockholders to sue over the 2019 merger of Viacom and CBS, finding a reasonable claim that former CBS chief Joseph Ianniello “sold” his support for the deal to Shari Redstone in exchange for a $125 million payout.Ianniello was president and chief operating officer under former CEO Les Moonves, and he sided with Moonves in trying to block the merger, arguing it would be bad for CBS.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA judge on Tuesday denied fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli’s request to get out of prison early, ruling that his case does not meet the extraordinary circumstances required for compassionate release.Giannulli, the husband of actress Lori Loughlin, is serving a five-month sentence at the federal facility in Lompoc, Calif., for his role in the college admissions scandal.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA federal judge on Friday urged William Morris Endeavor and the Writers Guild of America to set aside their “egos” and come to an agreement that would end the 20-month writers’ boycott.WME has asked Judge Andre Birotte to order an end to the boycott, which the agency argues is an illegal abuse of the guild’s power as a labor organization.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA federal judge in Washington, D.C., granted an injunction on Monday that will block the Trump administration from shutting down TikTok.There are now two injunctions preventing the administration from disabling the popular short-form video service. A judge in Philadelphia ordered a similar injunction on Oct.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA federal judge on Monday dismissed most of Rose McGowan’s civil claims against Harvey Weinstein and his attorneys, but allowed her to proceed with the argument that she was defrauded when she was tricked into revealing details of her memoir.McGowan filed the federal suit in October 2019, accusing Weinstein and attorneys Lisa Bloom and David Boies of conspiring to discredit her and to suppress her claim that Weinstein sexually assaulted her.As she was preparing