LOS ANGELES — Director and producer Craven Moorehead has filed a $10 million civil lawsuit for defamation against model Aria Lee over sexual assault allegations made against him by Lee back in June.
The lawsuit, filed a few days ago, was first reported yesterday by the New York Post’s Page Six and XBIZ has since been able to view the full complaint.
The lawsuit was filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Moorehead is represented by Robert Hantman in New York and Sergio Castaneda in Los Angeles.
The suit calls Lee’s allegations “false, malicious, defamatory and hurtful,” with Moorehead stating that though he “believes that every claim of sexual assault should be taken seriously,” he “vehemently denies” Lee’s version of events as “outlandish, outright fabrications.”
Lee's Allegations
As XBIZ reported, on June 5 performer Aria Lee released a video via Twitter with the caption, “Coming out please listen to my story.” In the video, Lee reads an anonymous letter sent to another adult industry trade publication alleging “a coverup going on at Gamma” regarding “porn performer Aria Lee” having “accused Craven Moorehead of raping her on set, [on] October 11, 2019.”
The anonymous letter read by Lee alleges that Moorehead forced Lee into a bathroom “to give him oral sex” during a Gamma shoot.
Later that day, AVN published an interview with Lee, reportedly done after the release of the video, where Lee gave a first-person account of the incident.
During the interview with that adult trade publication, Lee also alleged a second sexual assault two months later when Moorehead cast her as an extra in a music video.
Defamation/Libel Per Se
Moorehead’s “defamation/libel per se” civil complaint names as plaintiffs himself and his production company, Black Wings Media.
The lawsuit cites the AVN interview and other articles, including one by Vice’s Motherboard, as disseminating Lee’s account in detriment of Moorehead’s reputation and standing in the industry.
The director — whose company lost a lucrative third-party deal with Gamma the week after Lee made her allegations in a Twitter video — claims that “the false statements by Lee, while benefiting herself personally and professionally, will serve to undermine harm and sow doubt into other charges of nonconsensual sexual acts and assaults that may be legitimate.”
Moorehead’s lawsuit affirms he “seeks to ‘clear his name’ and be fairly compensated for the damages that he and his company have suffered as a result of these malicious lies.”
Robert Hanman, Moorehead’s lead attorney, told XBIZ that Lee’s allegations are “false, frivolous, made-up and contradictory and we fully expect to be vindicated in court."
Earlier today, Moorehead released a statement via Twitter announcing the filing of the defamation lawsuit, and claiming that Gamma had "cleared" him "of all of Aria Lee's 'rape' allegations back in January 2020" through "a third party investigator, witness statements, as well as other evidence that will be presented at the appropriate time."
XBIZ attempted to contact Lee via social media and through her agency, OC Modeling, who forwarded our request for comment to her and her legal counsel.
