A judge has ordered “Romeo and Juliet” actor Leonard Whiting to pay more nearly $200,000 in attorneys’ fees to Paramount Pictures and two other studios that won dismissal of a lawsuit brought by Whiting and his late co-star in the 1968 film.
Whiting and Olivia Hussey contended they were duped into appearing partially nude in one of the movie’s scenes. On Wednesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Holly J. Fujie granted Paramount $181,200 in attorneys’ fees. The judge also awarded $16,220 in attorneys’ fees to co-defendants Criterion Collections, Inc. and Janus Films LLC for having also been winning parties on the same anti-SLAPP motion.
Fujie ordered the fees to be paid within 30 days of her order.
“The court has reviewed the billing records provided by counsel and finds that the billing entries appear to be properly limited to fees incurred or related to the anti-SLAPP motion,” the judge wrote.
Fujie did not order that any fees or costs be paid by the estate of Olivia Hussey, Whiting’s co-star in the film who died of breast cancer on Dec. 27 at age 73.
Filed in February 2024, the suit alleged unlawful use of intimate photos and likeness and violation of the Performers Rights Act of the United Kingdom, and focused on the release of the film’s digital photos.
In an anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) motion filed in May 2024, Paramount Pictures attorneys stated that the entire case was a violation of the studio’s free speech. Fujie ruled in the studio’s favor on Oct. 18, saying it was too late for the plaintiffs to argue non-consent.
A previous suit brought by the pair alleged sexual harassment, childhood sexual abuse, fraud, negligence, infliction of emotional distress and other violations, and it was dismissed by a judge in May 2023.
According to the earlier lawsuit, Whiting was 16 years old when he played Romeo in the film, opposite Juliet portrayed by Hussey, who was 15 at the time. The first complaint further stated that the two actors were told by the film’s director, Franco Zeffirelli, “that there would be no nudity filmed or exhibited, and that plaintiffs would be wearing flesh-colored undergarments during the bedroom/love scene.”
Whiting is now 74 years old. “Romeo and Juliet” won Oscars for cinematography and costume design. The film was nominated for best picture and best director for Zeffirelli.