Bryan Singer agrees to pay $150,000 to settle sex assault claim

Photo by Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — His attorney still claims it never happened, but nevertheless, Bryan Singer has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle accusations from a man who claims the director and producer sexually assaulted him sixteen years ago.

Variety reports the payment was revealed in bankruptcy proceedings by Cesar Sanchez-Guzman, who filed suit against Singer in December 2017, claiming the Usual Suspects and eventually replaced Bohemian Rhapsody director sexually assaulted him during a party on a yacht, when Sanchez-Guzman was 17.

Singer’s agreement to pay to settle the accusation came to light when the trustee overseeing Sanchez-Guzman’s bankruptcy, which was initially settled in 2014, re-opened the case, declaring Sanchez-Guzman’s suit against Singer wasn’t listed among his assets, and that any money from a settlement should be distributed among Sanchez-Guzman’s creditors.

Variety reports it was the trustee who reached the agreement with Singer’s attorneys.  If the court approves it, Sanchez-Guzman’s suit against Singer would be dismissed with prejudice, meaning Sanchez-Guzman would be legally barred from filing it again.

In a statement to Variety, Singer attorney Andrew Brettler said, in part, “Mr. Singer has denied even knowing this individual, let alone allegedly having interacted with him more than 15 years ago. The decision to resolve the matter with the bankruptcy trustee was purely a business one, as litigation costs would well exceed the amount requested by the trustee to pay off the creditors who were owed money when the debtor filed for bankruptcy.”

Copyright © 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.