Director Sophia Nahli Allison Claims She Quit Lizzo’s Documentary After Witnessing ‘Unkind’ Behavior

Anna Chan
·2 min read
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Filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison is speaking out after three tour dancers filed a lawsuit against Lizzo Tuesday (Aug. 1) that alleged the star subjected them to sexual harassment and a hostile work environment.

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Allison claims in a message shared on her Instagram Stories and Twitter account that she had been attached to the singer’s documentary Love, Lizzo in 2019, but quickly left the project. “I usually do not comment on anything pop culture related,” she wrote over an image of herself at work. “But, In 2019, I traveled a bit with Lizzo to be the director of her documentary. I walked away after about 2 weeks. I was treated with such disrespect by her.”

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She continued, “I witnessed how arrogant, self-centered, and unkind she is. I was not protected and was thrown into a sh-tty situation with little support.” Allison then noted that her gut told her to leave the project, and is “grateful” that she did, adding that she “felt gaslit and was deeply hurt.”

“Reading these reports made me realize how dangerous of a situation it was,” the filmmaker concluded before sending her support to the dancers. “This kind of abuse of power happens far too often.”

Billboard has reached out to Lizzo’s reps for comment regarding Allison’s claims.

On Twitter, the filmmaker — who is known for the Oscar-nominated Netflix documentary A Love Song for Latasha, about the 1992 shooting death of 15-year-old Latasha Harlins in Los Angeles — shared why she wanted to speak out. “Validating other Black women’s experiences is deeply important to me,” she explained.

The Love, Lizzo documentary for HBO Max was announced in May 2022, and released in November 2022. Doug Pray, who previously produced HBO documentary The Defiant Ones, about Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s partnership, directed the project.

In the complaint filed Tuesday in Los Angeles, dancers Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez allege that Lizzo pressured them to go to an Amsterdam sex show and engage with the performers, and that she “called attention” to one dancer’s weight gain. The “Special” singer has been an outspoken proponent of body positivity, and often slammed internet trolls for body-shaming women.

The pop star also launched her own reality show, Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls, for Amazon’s Prime Video in March 2022. The program followed her search for backup dancers to join her on tour. “Y’all know how hard it’s been finding dancers that look like me,” she wrote on Instagram when the trailer dropped in February 2022. “But if I gotta get a TV show to get the world to see the value in us big grrrls B—H IMMA DO IT.”

Representatives for Lizzo have not yet returned Billboard‘s request for comment about the lawsuit.

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