The Los Angeles County Judge on Thursday dismissed a suit that stars of 1968 film “Romeo and Juliet ” had filed over the nude scene in the film. She found that their portrayal could not be considered as child pornography and that they filed their claim to late.
Alison Mackenzie, Superior Court Judge, ruled that defendant Paramount Pictures was entitled to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Olivia Hussey who played Juliet when she was 15 years old and now is 72. Leonard Whiting who played Romeo aged 16 is also 72.
Mackenzie found that the scene is protected under the First Amendment. She also noted that the actors had “not put forward any authority showing that the film can be deemed sufficiently sexually suggestive in a legal sense to be held as conclusively illegal.”
She also stated in her written decision that the lawsuit did not fall under a California law which temporarily suspended the statutes of limitations for child exploitation and that a re-released film of the movie from February had no effect on that.
The actor’s attorney has denounced this decision and stated that they intend to file a new version of the lawsuit in federal court.
Solomon Gresen, an attorney from the firm Solomon Gresen, said that he was “firmly convinced” that the sexualization and exploitation of minors by the film industry should be addressed and addressed legally to protect those who are vulnerable and ensure enforcement of the existing laws.
The film, along with its theme song, was a major hit at the time. Despite the brief nude scene in which Whiting’s buttocks are shown and Hussey has bare breasts briefly displayed — the film was played to generations of students who were studying Shakespeare’s drama.
The suit claims that Franco Zeffirelli , who died in 2019 aged 96, initially told the two men that they should wear flesh-colored underwear in the bedroom scenes that appear late in the film and were shot in the final days of shooting.
According to the suit, Zeffirelli assured Whiting and Hussey on the morning before the shoot that they should wear only body make-up, but still assured them that the camera was positioned so that it would not reveal nudity.
The suit claimed that despite these assurances, they had been filmed nude in violation of California laws and federal laws prohibiting indecency, exploitation and child abuse.
The suit claimed that Zeffirelli had told the actors they would have to act nude, “or else the Picture would not succeed” and that their careers would suffer. The actors claimed that it was the opposite, and that their careers were not as successful as the film suggested. They also said that they suffered emotional and mental damage for many years due to the sexual abuse, fraud and harassment. The actors had asked for more than $500,000,000 in damages.
The judge found, however, that the plaintiffs “cherry picked” from the law, and failed to provide any legal authority as to why it should be applied to “purported artistic merit, such a the award-winning movie at issue here.”
She cited a precedent from the appeals court that stated child pornography was “particularly repulsive” but “not all nude images of children are pornographic.”
The California law was used to make the ruling. This law is designed to protect defendants’ free speech from being suppressed by lawsuits. It is usually the first defense in a lawsuit.
Paramount’s attorney declined to comment on the ruling.
