Stuntwoman Devyn LaBella was working on Kevin Costner's Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2, performing stunts for actress Ella Hunt, who portrays the character Juliette, when she was unexpectedly asked to perform an unscripted rape scene. Horizon: An American Saga is a four-part Western film series directed by Costner, who also co-wrote, produced, and stars in the project.
On Tuesday, LaBella filed a complaint in the Superior Court of California for Los Angeles County, suing Costner and his production companies for sexual harassment, sexual discrimination, and for creating a hostile work environment.
The lawsuit states, "On May 2, 2023, plaintiff Devyn LaBella, a female stunt performer, was the victim of a violent unscripted, unscheduled rape scene directed by Kevin Costner. The impact of this impromptu work demand on Ms. LaBella has been profound, not only upending a career Ms. LaBella spent years building but leaving her with permanent trauma that she will be required to address for years to come."
The documents further assert that "Defendants informed Ms. LaBella she would be doubling for the majority of a scripted, aggressive and intimate rape scene." This scene was filmed on May 1, 2023, and LaBella and the actors previously rehearsed it with Wade and an intimacy coordinator present on a closed set.
According to the complaint, a "non-intimate scene" was scheduled for the following day. However, it is alleged that Costner, who was present on set, improvised additional scenes in which Juliette would be raped by a different character played by another actor.
The new scenes required the male actor to "climb on top of Ms. Hunt, violently raking up her skirt. Due to the ad hoc and violent nature of the sudden script change request, along with the failure to secure a contractually required intimacy coordinator for the scene, Ms. Hunt became visibly upset and walked off the set, refusing to do the scene," as stated in the documents.
The suit states that this "impromptu work demand" was in direct violation of provisions in both Hunt's SAG-AFTRA contract and LaBella's contract, which require that all performers are given 48 hours notice and must consent to any scenes involving nudity or simulated sex.
Unaware that Hunt had refused to perform the scene, LaBella alleged that Costner asked her to be the "stand-in" for Hunt. She was told to lay down in a wagon but claims she was unaware that Costner directed the male actor to "repeatedly perform a violent simulated rape" on her, "without proper notice, consent, preparation, or appropriate safeguard measures in place, such as the project’s intimacy coordinator being called in.
"Unlike the shots from the previous day, which were limited to just the actors involved engaging in a choreographed situation with a stunt coordinator, an intimacy coordinator, and some of the lead production personnel present and all nonessential production people excluded, on May 2, the entire experience was broadcast over monitors" to the entire crew.
"Further increasing confusion and stress for Ms. LaBella, the scene on May 2nd had no clear direction of when the scene began or ended. Defendant Costner failed to announce or to consistently announce 'action' at the beginning or 'cut' at the end of a shoot," according to the documents. "After the action had already begun, there was no time or space to process or reject the direction that was given."
LaBella "experienced shock, embarrassment and humiliation while attempting to process the situation." She reported experiencing "sudden bouts of crying on and off set" for several days and at one point, she "broke down in the hair trailer."
"Multiple people apologized to her over the course of days and made excuses for Director Costner, all of which made her feel even more uncomfortable," the lawsuit noted.
After production wrapped, LaBella began therapy in June 2023 to "address symptoms" of the alleged experiences, which included "intrusive distressing memories of the traumatic event, sleep disturbance, fears of intimacy, and anxiety."
Costner has denied the allegations. In a statement given to Variety, his attorney Marty Singer said his client "always wants to make sure that everyone is comfortable working on his films and takes safety on set very seriously."
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2 does not yet have a release date. ~Alexandra Heilbron