Nigel Lythgoe, a former “American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance” producer, is facing another sexual assault lawsuit, just days after former “Idol” judge Paul Abdul made similar accusations against him.
The suit, obtained Tuesday by multiple media outlets, was filed at the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles by two women identified only as Jane Does. The women accused Lythgoe of sexual assault/battery, sexual harassment, negligence, gender violence and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The plaintiffs were reportedly contestants on “All American Girl,” a single-season ABC reality show from 2003 that Lythgoe produced.
The lawsuit notes that filming for the show occurred in Los Angeles between January and May 2003, during which time Lythgoe ― reportedly referred in the filing as “John Roe N.L.” ― allegedly made unwanted “sexual advances” after a wrap party.
The plaintiffs say Lythgoe took an “unusual interest” in one of them and “insisted” that she “ride in his car to go back to the studio where everyone else was going” for an afterparty. The other woman allegedly followed “to ensure her colleague was not left alone.”
The former “Idol” producer allegedly took the women to his home and pulled his sweater over one of the women’s heads, “attempting to kiss her and pushing her body close to his.” He allegedly pinned the other woman against a grand piano when his first advance was rejected.
Lythgoe is alleged to have “pushed himself against [the second woman’s] body, and forced his mouth and tongue onto her despite her numerous statements telling him not to and attempts to pull her face away from his.” Lythgoe also allegedly groped the women on the set of the show.
Representatives for Lythgoe did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
Jordan Strauss/Invision/Associated Press
Abdul, who was one of the original “Idol” judges from 2002 to 2009, claimed in her own lawsuit last week that Lythgoe sexually assaulted her during the show’s early seasons and once more during her 2013-2016 tenure on “Dance.” Lythgoe denied her claims.
“To say that I am shocked and saddened by the allegations made against me by Paula Abdul is a wild understatement,” he said in a statement. “For more than two decades, Paula and I have interacted as dear — and entirely platonic — friends and colleagues.”
“While Paula’s history of erratic behavior is well known, I can’t pretend to understand exactly why she would file a lawsuit that she must know is untrue,” Lythgoe went on. “But I can promise that I will fight this appalling smear with everything I have.”
Abdul sued prior to Sunday’s expiration of the Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Accountability Act, which permits civil suits on claims that would otherwise be dismissed due to the statute of limitations. However, Tuesday’s plaintiffs filed suit after the expiration of the Accountability Act, which means they may have waited too long under California’s standard 10-year statute of limitations.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.