The lawyer of actress Asia Argento has released a statement claiming Jimmy Bennett, a former co-star who accused her of sexually assaulting him as a teen, was the real perpetrator.
Argento became a major proponent of the #MeToo movement after accusing Harvey Weinstein of rape last year.
- Weinstein accuser Asia Argento paid off her own sexual assault accuser
- Leaked image shows Asia Argento in bed with underage co-star
The Marie Attoinette star previously denied the allegations made by Bennett, despite leaked text messages in which she appears to admit: "I had sex with him, it felt weird".
An image obtained by TMZ showed Argento and Bennett in bed together.
"Asia at no time initiated a sexual encounter with Bennett," a statement from lawyer Mark Jay Heller read.
Heller referred to the leaked text messages obtained by TMZ, specifically one in which she writes: "the horny kid jumped me."
"She went on to relate that she became "frozen" when he was on top of her and he told her that she had been his sexual fantasy since he was 12 years old," the statement continued.
"[She] chose at the time not to prosecute Bennett for sexually attacking her."
Heller claims that Bennett - who was 17 at the time of the incident - then "intruded" on Argento's relationship with partner Anthony Bourdain, demanding money and threatening to "embarrass" the couple.
Argento's lawyer bolstered her earlier claim that the late Bourdain agreed to pay a settlement of US$380,000 to "protect" his girlfriend, but denied the sum was hush money for any wrong-doing.
"The payment agreement did not preclude Bennett from making any statements about the event," Heller said.
Heller announced that Bourdain's death meant he was not able to comment on his reasons for paying Bennett, and as such Argento would not be paying the balance of the payment - reportedly US$130,000.
The statement by Heller also alleged that Bennett had himself previously been charged with unlawful sex with a minor, stalking, child pornography and child exploitation.
Heller also suggested Argento "might even be suffering the fallback of a smear campaign by those already accused, who may have a vested interest in their accusers being denied credibility".
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