Danny Elfman Accused of Sexual Harassment By Female Composer Reportedly Being Sued for Failing to Pay

Cait Stoddard July 20th, 2023 - 12:23 PM

According to pitchfork.com, artist Danny Elfman has allegedly been sued by musician and composer Nomi Abadi, who claims the musician allegedly failed to pay two installments of $42,500 from a $830,000 settlement.

According to legal documents, Abadi submitted a breach of contract lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on July 19 over a alleged settlement and nondisclosure agreement that Elfman and Abadi reached in 2018.

The new alleged lawsuit states that both artists “agreed to resolve an underlying dispute which included terms that [Elfman] would make payments in four different categories in various installments over the course of five years totaling $830,000.”

Elfman allegedly failed to pay the two installments in July 2019 and 2021. Abadi is allegedly seeking injunctive relief for the $85,000 that Elfman allegedly did not pay. The lawsuit does not mention details about the alleged dispute that resulted in the settlement.

According to Rolling Stone, the alleged settlement was a result of Abadi allegedly accusing Elfman of multiple alleged sexual harassment over the course of a year.

Abadi allegedly filed a police report with the Los Angeles Police Department in 2017, after a year the alleged behavior, with allegations against Elfman that the police allegedly categorized as “indecent exposure.” Also the publication noted that the LAPD was allegedly unable to locate the report and allegedly declined to make a statement.

Abad allegedly claimed in the Rolling Stone report that she allegedly met Elfman in 2015 and she allegedly told the police that Elfman allegedly exposed himself and allegedly masturbated multiple times in front of her without her alleged consent. Elfman has denied the allegations in a statement to Rolling Stone through his attorney.

“How do I respond to accusations so serious that being innocent is not a valid defense? It is excruciating to consider that a 50-year career may be destroyed in one news cycle as a result of vicious and wholly false allegations about sexual misconduct.” said Elfman.

The artist adds: “Ms. Abadi’s allegations are simply not true. I allowed someone to get close to me without knowing that I was her ‘childhood crush’ and that her intention was to break up my marriage and replace my wife. When this person realized that I wanted distance from her, she made it clear that I would pay for having rejected her.”

The composer continues with: “I allowed an ill-advised friendship to have far-reaching consequences, and that error in judgment is entirely my fault. I have done nothing indecent or wrong, and my lawyers stand ready to prove with voluminous evidence that these accusations are false. This is the last I will say on this subject.”

When Elfman made the initial statement, a representative for the artist told Rolling Stone that the alleged original settlement was a reaction to the #MeToo movement and Elfman and Abadi’s “limited interactions, which did not involve sexual contact, were fully consensual.”

“When faced with threats from the other party to go public with untruths at the height of the #MeToo movement, [Elfman] faced the impossible choice between settling and continuing his career and earning a living for his family or deciding to fight what at the time was an unwinnable battle to tell the truth—Danny chose his family.”

The statements adds: “It is disappointing, but sadly not surprising, that this baseless narrative would be revived now that the payments have stopped. Accusations alone should not and do not equate to guilt, and Danny will defend himself and clear his name with the volume of evidence and the other party’s own words—her words speak for themselves.”

Abadi’s attorney, Jeff Anderson, shared a brief statement with Rolling Stone as well: “It is ironic that Mr. Elfman’s current statements are directly contrary to the position he maintained in the underlying dispute and to the evidentiary record.”