Biggest Celebrity Trials of 2023: Jonathan Majors, Gwyneth Paltrow
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If there’s one thing that’s guaranteed to stir up public interest, it’s a famous person in court. Perhaps it’s because in the witness box, a celebrity can find themself truly exposed.
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Instead of fielding softball questions on a red carpet, they’re subjected to forensic cross-examination about some of the most intimate aspects of their lives. Suddenly, even the most inconsequential details — whether it’s the cost of Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski lessons or the contents of Eva Green’s WhatsApp messages — can turn into big headlines.
No wonder celebrity civil trials have become the next frontier in content, from documentaries such as Netflix’s “Depp v Heard” and Discovery+’s “Vs.” series (an upcoming episode examines Nicola Peltz-Beckham’s ongoing legal wrangle with her wedding planners), plays like “Vardy V Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial” or even musical extravaganzas such as “Gwyneth Goes Skiing,” which just debuted in London.
But more importantly, celebrities on trial for criminal charges — such as Harvey Weinstein and Danny Masterson, both of whom are serving prison time for sexual assault — are an important reminder that no matter how famous, rich or powerful the individual, justice can prevail.
Read on to see the celebrity trials, listed in alphabetical order, that generated the biggest headlines in 2023.
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro was sued by his former assistant Graham Chase Robinson for gender discrimination and retaliation. The employee, who rose to become VP of production and finance at De Niro’s company Canal Productions, alleged that she was treated like the actor’s “office wife,” called a “bitch” on two occasions, given gendered tasks like vacuuming and sewing and asked to scratch De Niro’s back, which she said felt “creepy” and “disgusting.” De Niro countersued for $6 million, claiming Robinson had misused company funds.
De Niro repeatedly bristled during the trial in New York, calling the proceedings “nonsense,” particularly while in the witness box. At one point he denied verbally abusing his former employee before, according to reports, shouting across the courtroom: “Shame on you, Chase Robinson!” He also admitted he may have called Robinson during her grandmother’s funeral, telling the court: “If I did, I did.”
A jury concluded that while De Niro was not personally responsible for gender discrimination, Canal Productions was. The court awarded Robinson just over $1.2 million in damages. De Niro’s counterclaim was dismissed.
Eva Green
Bond actor Eva Green sued production company White Lantern and film financiers Sherborne Media Finance in January for her $1 million pay-or-play fee after the collapse of sci-fi movie “A Patriot,” in which she was set to star as a soldier. The atmosphere in court was unusually fraught, with both sides’ lawyers snapping at each other while Green became increasingly agitated during cross-examination. At one point, when asked to explain the words in a text she had sent, she retorted: “Words, words, words.”
As part of the discovery process, a number of Green’s private messages were made public, in which she called Sherborne “arseholes” and “sad little people” and described one of the film’s producers as “the devil.” She also referred to potential crewmembers as “shitty peasants.” In the witness box, Green said it was “humiliating” to hear the messages read out in court and blamed her “Frenchness” for writing them. While Judge Green (no relation) did not find that explanation credible, saying that the actor had proved to be a “frustrating” witness, he did ultimately rule in her favor. Despite her win, in a statement, Green said the process of going to court had been “painful and damaging.”
Prince Harry
Prince Harry became the first senior royal in 130 years to appear on the witness stand when he testified in June in his lawsuit against the Mirror Group Newspapers, whom he accused of “unlawful information gathering” including phone hacking. The presence of a royal in the drab Rolls Building at the High Court in London attracted hundreds of people, including onlookers, who queued to be admitted to the public gallery, while still more hung around outside the court to see Harry entering and leaving.
Inside the courtroom, the trial (which, as per U.K. rules was not broadcast), saw the prince forensically questioned by the Mirror Group’s lawyer Andrew Green K.C., with many of the duo’s repeated clashes over the facts taking on a surreal quality. By the second morning of Harry’s two-day testimony, the prince’s patience was wearing thin and as the barrister again launched into his questioning, Harry pointedly interrupted him to say: “Good morning, Mr. Green.”
On Dec. 15, Prince Harry was partially vindicated when Judge Fancourt ruled that he had proved his case in relation to 15 out of 33 articles and awarded him $180,000 in damages. But the judge noted “a good deal of the oppressive behavior of the Press towards the Duke over the years was not unlawful at all.”
Tory Lanez
Rapper Tory Lanez was found guilty in December 2022 of three felony firearm charges over a July 2020 incident in which Megan Thee Stallion alleged he shot her in the foot. However, his sentencing was delayed until August of this year because his legal team filed a motion for a new trial, which was ultimately denied.
Lanez was ultimately sentenced to 10 years in prison. At the sentencing, his team attempted to lessen his time by submitting letters of recommendation from family members, leaders of non-profit organizations and friends like Iggy Azalea. However, it proved unsuccessful. In a statement read in court the day before Lanez was sentenced, Stallion wrote: “He not only shot me, he made a mockery of my trauma. This is a statement for all survivors that their lives matter and there is zero tolerance for the torture that accompanies violence.”
Jonathan Majors
Marvel and “Creed III” star Jonathan Majors was arrested in March in New York over an alleged domestic assault involving his ex-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. In a statement at the time, the NYPD said a woman told officers that she had been assaulted and was taken to the hospital for “minor injuries to her head and neck.” Majors denied the allegations, but was arraigned the next day on charges of assault and harassment. In the weeks that followed, Majors was dropped by his management and PR team, and Disney eventually pulled his upcoming film “Magazine Dreams” from its release schedule. On Nov. 29, Majors’ trial officially began, with Majors pleading not guilty. The trial is ongoing, with Jabbari providing an emotional testimony that has revealed more details about the events surrounding the alleged assault.
Majors is accused of assaulting Jabbari in the backseat of a private car service they took from Brooklyn to their Chelsea apartment on March 25. Jabbari testified on Tuesday that she saw a text message on Majors’ phone from another woman that read, “Wish I was kissing you right now.” She took the phone out of his hands to see who sent the message and he forcefully retrieved it, according to Jabbari. She said this caused bruising, swelling and “excruciating” pain and resulted in a swollen finger and a cut behind her ear. However, police were not called until the next day, when Majors found Jabbari asleep on the floor of a walk-in closet in their apartment.
Majors’ attorney has alleged that it was Majors’ ex-girlfriend who assaulted him that night, not the other way around. If convicted, Majors could face up to a year in prison.
Danny Masterson
Former “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson was retried on rape charges in April after his case the previous year was declared a mistrial. He was convicted of two of three counts of forcible rape, with the jury hung 8-4 in favor of convicting on the third charge. In the end, the prosecutors decided not to retry Masterson on the third charge, and he was sentenced to 30 years to life in September. The actor maintained his innocence during the trial, and his lawyers have said they will attempt to appeal the conviction.
Gwyneth Paltrow
The phrase “You skied directly into my fucking back” was one of a number of meme-worthy moments that emerged from retired optometrist Terry Sanderson’s lawsuit against “Iron Man” actor and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, which went to trial in March. From Paltrow’s understated yet expensive courtroom attire — quickly dubbed “quiet luxury” by the fashion press — to her request to bring in “treats” for court security (denied by the judge), the televised trial spawned dozens of viral episodes with almost 30 million people watching the legal proceedings across YouTube and social media.
Sanderson originally sued Paltrow for $3.1 million after claiming extensive injuries after she had skied into him on a Utah slope in 2016. This was pared back to $300,000 while Paltrow, who denied Sanderson’s claim, saying he had skied into her, countersued for just $1 plus legal costs. During cross-examination, Paltrow confirmed the accident had interrupted her pricey ski vacation, saying: “Well, I lost half a day of skiing” – a phrase which, of course, instantly lit up the internet.
While the trial concluded when an eight-strong jury found in Paltrow’s favor, it continues to live on in pop culture: Discovery+ has commissioned a documentary about the legal battle and there’s even a musical, titled “Gwyneth Goes Skiing,” which premiered in London in December.
Pras
The Fugees member Pras was indicted in May 2019 on federal charges for his alleged role in a criminal conspiracy with Malaysian financier Jho Low that saw him illegally transferring $21 million of foreign funds to Barack Obama’s 2012 presidential campaign. Charges were also later added for attempting to quash a Justice Department investigation and influence an extradition case on behalf of China under the Trump administration. In April, he was found guilty on 10 counts related to the scheme.
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran brought his guitar to his defense during a copyright trial in New York in April, at one point performing in the witness box. Sheeran was sued by the heirs of Marvin Gaye‘s “Let’s Get It On” co-writer Ed Townsend, who claimed the 1970s hit had been ripped off by Sheeran in “Thinking Out Loud.”
Townsend’s daughter, Kathryn Griffin, told the court she was not a “copyright” troll and that she had gone to court to “protect my father’s legacy.” Sheeran denied the claims, saying the chords used in both tracks were the “building blocks” of musical composition. He played some chords to the jury and sang the opening lines of the song. According to reports, he prompted laughter in the courtroom after revealing he hadn’t even heard “Let’s Get It On” until it was used in a 1999 “Austin Powers” movie.
After winning the trial, Sheeran gave a statement outside the court in which he said: “I am not and will never allow myself to be a piggybank for anyone to shake.”
In 2022, Sheeran was involved in another copyright battle, over his song “Shape of You,” which he also won.
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey has been fighting numerous legal battles since he was first accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. In June he won his latest, a criminal case in Britain that could have potentially seen him imprisoned for life if he had been found guilty. The “House of Cards” actor was accused of sex offenses ranging from groping to performing oral sex without consent by four men while he had been artistic director of the Old Vic theater in London.
During a four week trial, the jury heard explicit testimonies from the men — whose identities must remain anonymous as per U.K. law — while the prosecution called Spacey a “sexual bully.” One man claimed that Spacey had grabbed his genitals so hard while driving he almost crashed the car, an episode the actor denied.
The jury were repeatedly reminded not to be “starstruck” by Oscar winner Spacey, but by the end even the prosecutor admitted she had been awed when it came to cross-examining Elton John and David Furnish, who both testified for the defense.
After two days of deliberations, the jury acquitted Spacey on all the charges on what happened to be the actor’s 64th birthday as he wept with relief. Five jurors stayed to meet Spacey after the conclusion of the trial, raising eyebrows among seasoned court reporters, while the actor also warmly embraced court security as he walked out of the building for a final time.
Donald Trump
Donald Trump faces a myriad of trials in 2024 — including for falsifying business records in New York, election interference in Georgia and federal indictments over classified documents and election obstruction — but for the past three months, he has been the subject of a civil fraud case.
In the trial, New York Attorney General Letitia James alleges that Trump conned banks and insurers into loaning him money by inflating his wealth on financial statements. Judge Arthur Engoron has already ruled that Trump is liable for committing fraud. So far, the state has called over 20 witnesses to the stand, including Trump himself — who is denying the claims — and his children Eric, Donald Jr. and Ivanka. During the trial, Trump has been hit with a gag order and multiple fines worth thousands of dollars for posting derogatory comments about the trial on social media. On Tuesday, Trump’s lawyers rested their defense, and closing arguments are scheduled to take place on Jan. 11.
Harvey Weinstein
Though Harvey Weinstein’s L.A. sexual assault trial concluded in December 2022, with the former film producer found guilty of three of seven charges, he wasn’t sentenced until February of this year. Weinstein was sentenced to 16 years in prison, which he must complete separately from his time in New York, where he is currently serving 23 years. At his sentencing, Weinstein made a rare statement maintaining his innocence: “I never raped or sexually assaulted Jane Doe 1. I never knew this woman, and the fact is she doesn’t know me. This is about money and coming after me.”
He added, “Please don’t sentence me to life in prison. I don’t deserve it. There are so many things that are wrong with this case. There is no evidence.”
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