The 53-year-old talent manager and producer is facing a maximum of 21 years to life in prison following a three-year investigation that led to the felony charges for incidents that go back to 2012.
Although his accusers have not been named by Santa Barbara prosecutors in the charge sheet, Ted actress Jessica Barth has publicly accused him of sexual assault in the past. She said he drugged her during a 2012 meeting, and the Los Angeles police investigated but closed the case after two years. Barth went public in the wake of the #MeToo movement in 2017 after another actress contacted her with a similar experience.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Guillod is accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman at a 2014 wine country retreat. The woman involved was reportedly one of his assistants. She said he took her from her bed at the retreat and raped her. Two employees of the retreat who saw her immediately afterward said she was confused and upset. The woman was given a $60,000 payment that required her to sign a non-disclosure agreement and leave the company, but she came forward after hearing about the other accusations against him of sexual assault.
Guillod is also being charged with raping two unconscious and intoxicated women across a 48-hour period in 2015. In addition, he is being charged with sexual crimes against a victim who was unconscious and intoxicated in a May 2012 attack. He is also being charged with kidnapping to commit robbery or rape, rape by fraud, and rape of a drugged victim for a December 2014 attack, among other charges.
Guillod's attorney says he hopes to clear his name
His attorney, Philip Cohen, said his client denies the accusations. He stated: “Mr. Guillod has been vilified for eight years without being afforded the opportunity to examine, under oath, his accusers. Justice is rarely swift and often does not come easy, but Mr. Guillod very much looks forward to clearing his name in the appropriate forum.”
His lawyer claims that Guillod has witnesses that will support his account of events and that he has passed five independent polygraph tests – tests that cannot be used in criminal court.
In addition to the recent hit Extraction, Guillod also executive produced Charlize Theron’s Atomic Blonde in 2017. He ran the talent agency Primary Wave Entertainment until 2017, when Barth accused him of drugging and sexually assaulting her.
Another former client, actress Heather Graham, voiced her support for Barth on Twitter, saying she believed the accuser.
After Barth and other women came forward with their accusations in 2017, several of the female stars who were managed by his firm quit.
A judge in Santa Barbara County reduced his bail from $3 million to $1 million on Tuesday following arguments by his lawyer that he has never fled despite knowing about some of the allegations for many years.
The Los Angeles Times also reported that at least three women have received settlements related to actions Guillod allegedly made at previous companies, but their sources were not authorized to discuss the payouts.
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