Paula Abdul has lodged a lawsuit against Nigel Lythgoe for allegedly sexually assaulting her while she was a judge on “American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance” under him as an executive. In court documents obtained by “Page Six” from the Dec. 29 filing, she claims Lythgoe forced himself on her on multiple occasions, and the details were revealed to a Los Angeles court.
Abdul, 61, opened up about
the first alleged assault that occurred during the audition stages of “one of Idol’s initial seasons.” She recalled that Lythgoe allegedly pushed her against a hotel elevator wall and forcefully fondled her while trying to initiate a kiss.“Lythgoe shoved Abdul against the wall, then grabbed her genitals and breasts, and began shoving his tongue down her throat,” the court documents stated. “Abdul attempted to push Lythgoe away from her. When the doors to the elevator for her door opened, Abdul ran out of the elevator and to her hotel room. Abdul quickly called one of her representatives in tears to inform them of the assault.”
The entertainer and judge said she refrained from continuing to push her allegations of the incident because she was worried Lythgoe would retaliate by firing her from the show.
The “Opposites Attract” singer continued to claim that the now-74-year-old executive sexually assaulted her again in 2015 after she asked for a deal to be a judge on “So You Think You Can Dance.
“In her lawsuit, Abdul said Lythgoe invited her to his home after hours under the guise of discussing further career opportunities for her, and she went because she thought it would be for work.
However, “Toward the end of the evening, Lythgoe forced himself on top of Abdul
while she was seated on his couch and attempted to kiss her while proclaiming that the two would make an excellent ‘power couple.’ Abdul pushed Lythgoe off of her, explaining that she was uninterested in his advances, and immediately left.”RELATED CONTENT: Randy Jackson Is Out as ‘American Idol’ Judge