A lawyer for Kevin Costner is hitting back against the ‘Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2’ stuntwoman who claims she was part of an unscripted rape scene in the western movie.
Last month, stuntwoman Devyn LaBella alleged in a lawsuit reported on by ‘The Daily Mail’ that she was ‘the victim of a violent, unscripted, unscheduled rape scene directed by Kevin Costner’ while she was a double for actress Ella Hunt for ‘Horizon’ in May 2023.
There was a new amended complaint filed June 16 that the outlet also received, which it says includes text messages between LaBella and the film’s intimacy coordinator that detail the painful emotions she allegedly endured once the scene was finished.
Kevin Costner’s lawyer, Marty Singer, was quick to respond saying, “Ms. LaBella was doing a rehearsal on an Insert Shot for a scripted scene. There was no intimacy or anything sexual in the shot. There was tugging on a dress while she was fully clothed and in a dress with long bloomers lying down next to a male actor,” the statement obtained by DailyMail reads.
This amended complaint details the stuntwoman learning about the scenes and that they would be filmed with actor Roger Ivens who plays Birke. According to the claim, this was a decision that was made during the pre-production process and ‘no arrangements were made’ for an intimacy coordinator to be present during the shoot, even though LaBella’s contract allegedly required the coordinator to be present during intimate scenes.
Reportedly, this made Hunt ‘walk off the set, refusing to do the scene [because] of the ad hoc nature of the sudden script change request.’ LaBella was then allegedly asked by Costner to be Hunt’s ‘stand in’ to ‘line up [a] shot’ which she was, according to the Singer’s response, in agreement with.
Ms. LaBella’s complaint claims, Costner was ‘fully in charge of directing the action filmed’ that day, which is when he directed Ivens ‘to repeatedly perform a violent simulated rape on Ms. LaBella,’ according to DailyMail.
It continues, saying ‘As directed by Costner, this unscripted, unrehearsed scene consisted of Mr. Ivens mounting Ms. LaBella while miming the unbuttoning of his pants, and using his body and arms to forcibly pin down Ms. LaBella, who was on her back underneath him,’ the complaint reads. ‘Mr. Ivens violently rustled Ms. LaBella’s skirt up as if trying to penetrate her against her will and he was directed to pin her legs open with his knee.’
The complaint also states: ‘Ms. LaBella was never given the opportunity to prepare for or consent to participate in this scene, much less to object to it.
LaBella says she suffered ‘shock, embarrassment and humiliation while attempting to process the situation.
Stay tuned for updates regarding this case
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