Latest news with #Lusi
The Guardian
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Actor said Noel Clarke's Bafta award would hand him ‘loaded gun' against women, court told
A prominent actor said Noel Clarke's honorary award from Bafta was handing him a 'loaded gun' to seduce and silence women, the high court has heard. Jing Lusi, who stars in Gangs of London and Red Eye, is one of more than 20 women whose allegations of sexual misconduct by Clarke were reported by the Guardian in 2021-22 that form the basis of Clarke's libel claim against the publisher. In 2021, Bafta announced that it would give Clarke the outstanding British contribution to cinema award, although it was suspended after the revelations in the Guardian. In her witness statement, Lusi alleges that Clarke propositioned her over a dinner in 2018, 'describing sexual acts to me', repeatedly boasted about his 2009 rising star Bafta and then threatened her when she turned him down. The court was played audio of Lusi speaking to the Guardian journalist Sirin Kale in which the actor said of Clarke's honorary award: 'It's going to be a rape tool kit. You're handing him a rape tool, either he's going to use it to seduce women and lure them back to his lair or he's going to use it to silence them … It's terrifying. He couldn't stop talking about it [the 2009 award] in 2018.' Lusi, who also starred in Crazy Rich Asians, also said that the award was handing Clarke a 'loaded gun'. No allegations of rape were published by the Guardian. On Friday, Philip Williams, representing Clarke, asked Lusi whether she had ever made any such allegations against his client. She replied that she had not and was not accusing him of rape but when asked whether she wanted to retract her words about the award being 'a rape tool kit' she declined to do so. She also said on the call that the 2021 award was a box-ticking exercise 'because he's black'. Lusi told the court she believed that it was a response to Bafta having been accused of 'being too white' but her issue was that Clarke's body of work 'didn't warrant any award at that level'. She compared his 'mediocre' work unfavourably with that of Ang Lee, another person of colour, who received the Bafta fellowship award in 2021. When Williams suggested that she was 'professionally jealous' she laughed and denied it. Clarke returned to the witness box on Friday to respond to the discovery by his former best man and business partner, Davie Fairbanks, during the trial of a hard drive containing 15 photos of a woman given the pseudonym Ivy. Fairbanks claimed Clarke had sent them to him. Ivy said she had never seen them before. Clarke told the court: 'My explanation about him having the photographs is he stole them from my devices. I have never shared anyone's pictures, never have done, never would do. The only explanation is that Mr Fairbanks has … illicitly stored them for a decade and a half.' Gavin Millar KC, for the Guardian, suggested that Clarke had been forced to 'come up with a theory' after the photos were found but had no evidence to support it. The writer and producer of the Kidulthood trilogy denied Millar's assertions that he kept them for 'collateral' against women and that his argument – that he kept the photos in an unprotected folder on a laptop whose password he had given to his friend – was implausible. Clarke said that he had stored the photographs for 'aesthetic reasons' and that Fairbanks only had the laptop password in case anything ever happened to him. Apart from one more witness on 4 April attesting to the truth of the Guardian's reporting about Clarke, next week will be taken up by its journalists giving evidence, arguing that their reporting was in the public interest.
The Independent
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Actress said Noel Clarke would use Bafta to ‘lure women to lair', court told
Actress Jing Lusi told the Guardian that Noel Clarke would use an honorary Bafta to 'dupe girls and lure them back to his lair' or use it to 'silence them', the High Court has heard. Ms Lusi, who starred in ITV thriller Red Eye, told the newspaper it was 'terrifying' that Clarke was due to be given an honorary Bafta in 2021. The Gangs Of London actress is the latest witness to give evidence in Clarke's libel battle against Guardian News and Media (GNM). Clarke is suing the publisher of the Guardian over seven articles and a podcast, including an article in April 2021 that said 20 women who knew him professionally had come forward with allegations of misconduct. The Doctor Who actor, 49, denies the allegations and claims several people who have made allegations against him are part of a conspiracy to defame him. On Friday, audio of a conversation between Ms Lusi and Guardian journalists weeks before the articles were published was played in court, where she discussed Bafta's announcement that it would give Clarke the Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award. In the conversation, she said the award was 'a loaded gun'. She said: 'He is either going to use it to dupe girls and lure them back to his lair or use it to silence them.' She continued: 'It is a double-edged sword he is going to bring down on women.' Referring to Clarke's first Bafta win in 2009, Ms Lusi also said that he 'dined out on that ticket', and that he 'could not stop talking about it' when the pair worked together on a film in 2018. In court, Clarke's barrister, Philip Williams, said that Ms Lusi's claims were 'outrageous', and asked whether she wished to withdraw the 'lair' allegation. Ms Lusi replied: 'No.' Mr Williams later said: 'You were part of the campaign against Mr Clarke's Bafta. 'That was fuelled by jealousy, spite and the fact you thought that he was mediocre.' Ms Lusi replied: 'That is not correct.' The court in London was told that Clarke and Ms Lusi worked together on the film SAS: Red Notice, which was filmed in Budapest, Hungary. In her witness statement, Ms Lusi said that at a dinner with Clarke and others during filming, she said she was aspiring to become a writer and suggested they could do a read-through of a script she had written. In her statement, she said: 'Noel seemed keen at the idea, so I asked 'where?', to which he responded, without missing a beat, 'in my bed' or 'in my bedroom'. 'I was taken aback and said 'what?' and he repeated 'in my bedroom', the second time playing mock shy, sipping on this drink. This was all in front of the others.' In court, Mr Williams said: 'The opportunity was there to go through the script.' He continued: 'He would read the script through in front of other people. There would be no reason to separate you off.' Ms Lusi replied: 'I did not have the script with me. I did not mean right there at that dinner.' She continued: 'He said something that was not about the work but sexualising a legitimate idea I had involving other actors.' She added: 'He turned it into a sexual connotation.' Ms Lusi also later claimed that at the same dinner, Clarke asked to look at her hands, which she refused. She claimed Clarke replied: 'Why? You won't let a black man touch you?' In court, Mr Williams told Ms Lusi that Clarke 'never said' the comment, to which Ms Lusi replied: 'He absolutely did. I found it horrifying.' Mr Williams suggested to Ms Lusi that during her and Clarke's time in Budapest, the pair engaged in 'sexual banter and conversation', which she 'volunteered'. Ms Lusi told the court that she had made some disclosures about her sex life to Clarke, but described herself as a 'prude' and said he 'had a way of making the most innocuous thing sexual' and was 'very probing'. In her witness statement, Ms Lusi then described another dinner between the pair in Budapest at which Clarke 'told me in explicit terms that he had fantasised about me, describing to me what he wanted to do to me', which she said left her 'feeling so disgusted'. She later claimed he threatened her, stating: 'When I rebutted what Noel had said, that's when the threat came. 'He said something to the effect of 'don't tell anyone about this, or I will find out about it. It's a small world, I know everyone, if you do tell anyone I will find out about it and I'll come for you' or 'I'll get you.' It was a clear threat. 'I think I agreed to what he asked, more out of shock and disbelief in the moment than out of fear.' In court, Mr Williams asked Ms Lusi why she did not confront Clarke the following day, to which she responded: 'You are asking me why I did not confront the man who I felt had harassed me and threatened me.' She continued: 'I think he knew he was out of order. If he did not know that, why did he silence me?' She added: 'I did not feel comfortable.' The hearing before Mrs Justice Steyn is due to conclude in April, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Zhao Lusi Health Update: Actress Appears in Public for First Time After Scare
Chinese actress Zhao Lusi has made a surprise public appearance days after she suffered a health scare. Lusi has been going through a period of recovery after being hospitalized in Shanghai on December 18, 2024. Although she'd earlier updated her fans about her condition, the actress fully addressed the health scare while making her first appearance. According to Asia One, Zhao Lusi was part of an event in Chengdu for the beverage brand Viee for the first time since her health scare. Upon her arrival, fans present at the event were filled with joy to see her recovering well. As reported by ComingSoon previously, the actress, known for her work in the global hit C-Drama Hidden Love, was seen being supported by her staff as she was unable to walk. A clip of Lusi in a wheelchair in a weak state took over the internet causing a sense of worry to spread among her fans. Following this, speculations hit social media suggesting that Lusi's condition worsened because of depression, overwork, and possible aphasia. However, her team provided an update on Weibo about her health stating that Lusi 'felt unwell and went to the hospital for examination and treatment' while filming for her upcoming project Lovers. In her interview with Global Times recently, Lusi opened up about her severe depression and revealed that it led to symptoms like loss of speech and further affected her other physical functions. At the event, fans noticed Lusi using a cane to walk as she further shared details about her health scare. She conveyed, 'I experienced symptoms of paralysis and loss of speech. It was really hard to face myself at that time, but I'm so grateful to be like this right now.' The actress also raised awareness and announced she is starting a foundation in collaboration with Viee to assist those dealing with mental health problems. She added, 'I hope everyone can take this illness seriously and not delay treatment until it gets so severe. I realised there are many people like me so I really want to do something for them.' The post Zhao Lusi Health Update: Actress Appears in Public for First Time After Scare appeared first on - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More.
