Ponante told XBIZ that he filed a complaint with the Los Angeles Police Department March 3, two days after the alleged assault, and that the movie’s director Jennifer James has already been contacted by detectives.
Ponante was invited to cover Egoist Entertainment’s set for the movie, “eXXtra, eXXtra.” Walking onto the set at 1317 Willow St. in downtown Los Angeles, Ponante said Lockwood, who accused the journalist of calling him a “fag,” verbally accosted him from his car.
After denying that he ever insulted Lockwood, Ponante said he attempted to walk to the set from the street, but Lockwood exited his vehicle and began forcefully shoving him in the chest while continuing his verbal assault.
The altercation stems from Lockwood’s belief that Ponante called him a “fag” on his blog, a charge Ponante denies.
In defense, Ponante says he began splashing coffee on Lockwood to stop the physical confrontation.
As a result of Lockwood’s alleged assault, Ponante said he sustained a bruised chest.
After Lockwood returned to his car and the tension simmered down, Ponante said he was escorted into the building only to be asked to leave.
“While I have been counseled that a civil case against the production company is a viable option, and while I personally feel that the safety of invited guests is so basic a requirement that it is unbelievable that it is even being debated, I am baffled that representatives of the production continue to downplay the assault while both praising the anal scene that followed and ignoring the fact that one of their actors had physically threatened one person, assaulted another and then let that actor work while kicking me off the set,” Ponante told XBIZ.
Det. Dollie Swenson of the LAPD’s Central Patrol Division did not respond to a call seeking comment.
“Things tend to be downplayed to standard porn industry feuds, but then again there are always threats, and saturation makes everything seem negligible,” Ponante said. “In this case there are deeper issues. I don’t want to destroy anyone’s livelihood, but both Lockwood and the production company’s behavior was reprehensible and needs enough of a paper trail so people don’t think it’s OK.”
Egoist Entertainment producer Brian Scott was quick to point out that the physical altercation did not take place on his set, but outside the facility.
“All this drama happened out on the street before they came on set,” Scott told XBIZ. “Any issue between these two has nothing to do with Egoist. I know many gossip sites have covered this incident, but I just want to say that it’s not going to prevent Egoist from hiring Lockwood again or inviting Gram back to one of our sets. Lockwood apologized to me personally for causing a disruption and I have no problem with Gram at all. In fact, I understand his position.”
Scott said the police have not contacted him about the incident.
“The police have decided not to pursue this and I’m content with leaving it at that,” Lockwood told XBIZ. “It’s really hard to believe everything you read and anyone who has been so overly concerned needs to get a life. There are guys dying in Iraq and some people are worried if I pushed Gram or not. It’s ridiculous.”
