Danny Elfman, one of Hollywood’s most prolific musicians and composer of “The Simpsons” theme and countless iconic movie scores, was sued for partial nonpayment of an $830,000 settlement made in 2018 by a female fellow composer who had accused him of sexual harassment the year before.
Elfman has sternly denied any wrongdoing, and characterized the relationship to Rolling Stone, which first reported the lawsuit and settlement, as a friendship and mentorship that went sideways when the 70-year-old rejected the now 35-year-old woman’s romantic advances. The Wednesday filing in Los Angeles Superior Court seeks injunctive relief for partial nonpayment to the tune of about $85,000 to a charitable organization for sexual assault victims that the woman set up after they forged the agreement five years ago.
The woman, identified by Rolling Stone as Grammy-nominated pianist and composer Nomi Abadi, accused Elfman in a 2017 police report of masturbating in front of her and multiple other incidents of “indecent exposure” and other inappropriate behavior in the months after they met and began a friendship in 2015. She is suing him for breach of contract, according to legal documents obtained by TheWrap.
Rolling Stone reported that Elfman supplied multiple documents, messages and witness accounts to dispute the woman’s claims, but privately settled the matter at the height of the MeToo movement to protect his family, career and reputation. He acknowledged playful and “platonic” interactions with Abadi, including a nude photoshoot she said was coerced – and he maintains was initiated at her urging – but both parties seem to agree there was never any physical sexual contact.
“How do I respond to accusations so serious that being innocent is not a valid defense?” Elfman wrote in a statement to Rolling Stone. “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.”
He expressed regret for letting Abadi develop an intimate friendship “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. … I have done nothing indecent or wrong, and my lawyers stand ready to prove with voluminous evidence that these accusations are false.”
Abadi was a former child prodigy who met Elfman in Denver in 2015 and, after exchanging emails about music, began visiting his studio, where she says he would often answer the door in only a robe and said nudity was part of his creative process.
“Nomi is a strong, resilient, and talented musician who has recognized that sexual misconduct can derail and overshadow the careers of women in the music industry,” said Karen Barth Menzies, an attorney for Abadi. “I admire that she has the courage to stand up for herself and stand up for other women by founding the Female Composer Safety League, and I am proud to stand beside her as she pursues justice in the legal system.”
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.
