Marilyn Manson rape accuser Ashley Smithline claims Evan Rachel Wood 'manipulated' her into lying
Warning: The article contains information about sexual and physical assault that may trigger some readers. Discretion is advised.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The Marilyn Manson rape scandal has taken a shocking turn after one of his accusers, his former partner Ashley Smithline, 38, reportedly said that she "lied" about the abuse after being "pressured and manipulated" into doing so by the shock rocker's ex.
Smithline said in a new legal filing that she was manipulated into lying by Evan Rachel Wood, who had also accused the 'Disposable Teens' singer of rape. Smithline, who dated Manson in 2010, accused him of rape on 'The View.' In January, her lawsuit against the musician was dismissed after she missed a court deadline to name a new counsel. She told Page Six that she "succumbed to pressure from Wood and her associates to make accusations of rape and assault against [Manson] that were not true."
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What really happened to Ashley Smithline?
Smithline allegedly called Manson "a monster" before speaking about how she was "abused" by the singer on 'The View,' per the Daily Mail. She claimed that the 'Deep Six' singer cut her with a swastika-emblazoned knife despite the fact that she was Jewish. She claimed he shoved his fist in her mouth during sex and made her perform a blood pact. Continuing, she said that Manson tied her by her hands and feet and continued to penetrate her despite the 38-year-old repeatedly saying no. However, she now claimed Wood manipulated her by suggesting she may have been so traumatized that she had repressed the alleged abuse because of which she was unable to recollect what had happened.
In February 2021, Wood accused Manson of sexually abusing her. She is currently linked to Illma Gore and the pair are working on a documentary titled 'Phoenix Rising'. Smithline said that Gore or Ashley Walters, a former assistant and another accuser, contacted her in 2020 and asked her about the alleged abuse. Smithline responded, "No this did not happen to me, and this was not my experience." She added that Wood said "just because she could not remember" those things "did not necessarily mean that it did not happen."
'I was manipulated...!'
Subsequently, Esme Bianco, another of Manson's exes, also accused him of sexual, physical and emotional abuse. Interestingly, Manson's attorney, Howard King, highlighted that Smithline's lawyer, Jay Ellwanger, was the same attorney representing Bianco in the sexual assault case. "Looking back, I feel I was manipulated by Ms. Wood, Ms. Gore, Ms. Bianco, and Mr. Ellwanger to spread publicly false accusations of abuse against Mr. Warner," Smithline reportedly said.
King reportedly claimed Smithline called Manson last week and apologized, adding that she was not seeking any financial gain for the false allegations. Smithline said she "never received any money from Mr. Warner and not seeking any money from him." "I have no intention of refiling any lawsuit against Mr. Warner," Smithline said.