Romeo And Juliet controversial nude scene not considered child pornography, judge rules

A judge in Los Angeles, California has said that she will dismiss the child sex abuse lawsuit concerning the stars of 1968’s Romeo and Juliet.

As reported by the BBC, Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting were 15 and 16 years old at the time of filming the movie, and recently filed a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures for around $500 million in damages for child sexual abuse and sexual harassment. The pair alleged that Franco Zeffirelli, who directed the film (and died in 2019), had told them that they needed to film nude scenes “or the Picture would fail”, despite them previously being reassured that they wouldn’t have to do so.

Furthermore, it was alleged that Zeffirelli had reassured the actors that no nudity would be captured by the cameras, but during the controversial bedroom scene in the movie, Hussey’s breasts and Whiting’s buttocks are shown.

However on Thursday (25 May), Superior Court judge Alison Mackenzie tentatively ruled that the plaintiffs had “cherry picked” applicable statutes for the case. Furthermore, it was ruled that the scene was protected by the First Amendment, and that the actors hadn’t “put forth any authority showing the film here can be deemed to be sufficiently sexually suggestive as a matter of law to be held to be conclusively illegal” (via NBC News).

“Plaintiffs’ argument on the subject is limited to cherry-picked language from federal and state statutes without offering any authority regarding the interpretation or application of those statutory provisions to purported works of artistic merit, such as the award-winning film at issue here,” the judge said (via UNILAD).

Hussey and Whiting’s attorney, Solomon Gresen, told the BBC he felt the ruling was on “the wrong side of this issue”, and claimed that the actors are considering an appeal. Gresen is reportedly planning on filing another separate lawsuit in federal court.

“We firmly believe that the exploitation and sexualisation of minors in the film industry must be confronted and legally addressed to protect vulnerable individuals from harm and ensure the enforcement of existing laws,” Gresen said in a statement (via NBC News).