Paula Abdul and Nigel Lythgoe
Leon Bennett/Getty Images; Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Paula Abdul has sued former “American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance” producer Nigel Lythgoe, claiming he sexually assaulted her twice.
The singer filed a lawsuit Friday against Lythgoe and the show's production companies, claiming the producer sexually assaulted her during one of the early seasons of “American Idol” and then in 2014 when she hosted “So You Think You Can Dance.” sexually abused.
In one case, according to documents obtained by Rolling Stone magazine, Lythgoe is accused of sexually assaulting Abdul in an elevator at a hotel where they were both staying while traveling to an audition for the singing competition show. The lawsuit doesn't specify the year in which the incident occurred, but claims it covered the “early seasons” of the series.
“Lythgoe pushed Abdul against the wall, then grabbed her genitals and breasts and began shoving his tongue down her throat,” the complaint states. “Abdul tried to push Lythgoe away from her. When the elevator doors opened for her door, Abdul ran out of the elevator and into her hotel room. Abdul, in tears, quickly called one of their representatives to inform him of the attack.”
Years later, the lawsuit alleges Lythgoe sexually abused her again in 2014 when she was invited to his home for dinner. The complaint states that Abdul only attended the dinner because she thought it was a “work invitation.”
“Toward the end of the evening, Lythgoe forced himself to straddle Abdul while she sat on his couch and attempted to kiss her while proclaiming that the two would make an excellent 'power couple,'” Rolling reported Stone in the lawsuit. “Abdul pushed Lythgoe away from her, stating that she was not interested in his advances, and left immediately.”
In the lawsuit, Abdul said she did not comment on any of the allegations because she feared retaliation after both alleged incidents. Abdul's contracts for both “American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance” also stipulated that she was “prohibited from publicly disclosing confidential information” about the shows and their business affairs, the complaint says.
Elsewhere in the lawsuit, Abdul said she also witnessed Lythgoe sexually assaulting one of her then-assistants during the filming of “So You Think You Can Dance” in 2015. The singer claims Lythgoe “approached Abdul and April from behind, pressed himself against April and began groping them.” April didn’t agree.”
Abdul's lawsuit alleges that Lythgoe teased her over the phone about his alleged behavior and incidents, saying he “clearly knew that his attacks on Abdul were not only wrong, but that he had the power to silence her.” “
Lythgoe produced American Idol from 2002 to 2014 and So You Think You Can Dance from 2005 to 2014.
In addition to Lythgoe, the lawsuit also listed the shows' production companies, American Idol Productions, Dance Nation Productions, 19 Entertainment and Fremantlemedia North America, as defendants.
has reached out to reps for Lythgoe and American Idol for comment.