David Geffen fired back at his ex-husband’s breach-of-contract lawsuit, calling Donovan Michaels’ claims a “work of fiction” designed to embarrass him and extract a payout he neither needs nor deserves.
The 82-year-old entertainment mogul filed his response Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, where Michaels – aka David Armstrong – sued last month. The two married in 2023 and Geffen filed for divorce earlier this year.
The 32-year-old Michaels alleged that his much-older ex ensnared him in a years-long web of exploitation after shopping for a “vulnerable” partner online, then “masquerading as a white knight while hiding behind wealth, philanthropy and fame.” The couple reportedly did not have a prenuptial agreement.
Also filed in Superior Court, Michaels’ lawsuit says he was a “young vulnerable black man, orphaned as a toddler” who wound up in foster care at 18 months old. It says the couple met via the website Seekingarrangements.com, where Geffen “learned of Michaels’ troubled past — his history of neglect, poverty, instability and legal entanglements,” and leveraged that to make him “an object of exploitation … whose trauma could be weaponized for Geffen’s personal gratification and public image.”
In their response, Geffen’s attorneys at Glaser Weil described Armstrong’s complaint as “ludicrous and contrived,” accusing him of attempting to wage a public relations campaign while seeking a large settlement.
“Plaintiff cannot embarrass Geffen and extort a settlement with petty gossip and salacious lies,” according to the filing obtained Saturday by TheWrap.
Armstrong, a former model and adult film actor, alleges Geffen promised him lifelong financial support and shared ownership of assets during their time together. Geffen denies making any such promises, noting that his estate plan and financial records contain no evidence of agreements to provide Armstrong with property or ongoing support.
The defense paints Armstrong as a reckless spender who abused Geffen’s generosity during their two-year marriage. According to the filing, Armstrong used assistants to charge hundreds of thousands of dollars to Geffen’s accounts for luxury clothing, elective cosmetic procedures and extravagant gifts for friends. In the final months of the marriage, Geffen claims Armstrong also spent heavily on OnlyFans subscriptions and male escorts.
Geffen’s lawyers argue Armstrong misrepresented his behavior throughout their relationship, hiding extensive drug use and multiple extramarital affairs. The filing contends that while Geffen helped pay for Armstrong’s rehab and counseling, Armstrong’s drug use — including cocaine and ketamine — persisted.
“Geffen loved Plaintiff and treated him with nothing but kindness, respect, and generosity throughout their relationship,” the filing reads. Staff and friends, it adds, described Geffen as treating Armstrong “like a king.”
The defense also highlights that Armstrong continues to live rent-free in one of Geffen’s New York apartments and receives voluntary monthly payments, contradicting allegations that Geffen abandoned him and left him homeless and destitute.
The filing requests that Armstrong’s complaint be dismissed with prejudice and that Geffen be awarded legal fees. It also includes a demand for a jury trial, no date for which has been set.
