A judge has indicated he may dismiss a lawsuit filed by a former adult film actress, who alleges a member of the plaintiff’s onetime profession falsely suggested she was among the participants seen in a video engaging in dog sex.
Emily Willis, whose real name is Litzy Lara Banuelos, is currently in a vegetative state and is the subject of a second lawsuit brought by her mother, Yesenia Lara Cooper, against the Summit Malibu rehabilitation center alleging dependent adult abuse. But in Oct. 21, Willis sued Gianna Dior for defamation in Los Angeles Superior Court, seeking more than $5 million in compensatory damages, plus punitive damages, over the video.
On Wednesday, no one showed up on Willis’ behalf for a scheduled proceeding and Judge Michael Small said that if the same thing happens during the next hearing on May 7, he may set a date for yet another session, this time dealing with why the case should not be dismissed. On Feb. 28, when Small granted a motion by Willis’ attorney to be relieved as counsel because of a breakdown in communications, he said that Cooper would need to file a guardian ad litem application and be represented by an attorney in order for her daughter’s case to proceed.
A guardian ad litem is someone who represents the best interests of a minor or incapacitated person who lacks the ability to represent themselves in a legal proceeding. An attorney representing Dior appeared for Wednesday’s hearing, but neither Cooper nor anyone else showed up on Willis’ behalf.
Dior’s real name is Emily Katherine Correro. According to Willis’s suit, in 2021 a video began circulating within the adult entertainment industry of several women engaging in sexual acts with a dog.
“There was considerable rumor, speculation and innuendo about the identities of the performers within the industry, including on social media,” the suit states. “It was a scandal, and a highly salient one, with obvious potential to destroy careers.”
Dior tweeted the false accusation that Willis took part in the video, the suit states.
Dior’s initial tweet included a screenshot of a tweet by Willis, in which the plaintiff insulted an unidentified person, the suit states.
“Dior apparently assumed (Willis’) insult was directed at her and published her lie about the dog video in response,” the suit states.
When other adult performers tweeted their criticism of Dior and others who were spreading rumors about the dog video, Dior doubled down on her accusation, according to the suit.
In her previous court papers, an attorney for Dior denied Willis was defamed and said the plaintiff’s case should be dismissed.
In Cooper’s Santa Monica Superior Court suit, she alleges Summit Malibu was negligent in the care of her daughter, who suffered a heart attack at the facility that left her in a vegetative state in 2024. Willis, now 26, was at the facility for treatment for a ketamine addiction.
However, Summit Malibu attorneys deny that Willis was the victim of dependent adult abuse and are asking Judge Mark A. Young to dismiss the cause of action during a hearing scheduled June 18.