The actors of Romeo and Juliet of 1968 will sue the studio Paramount Pictures for sexual abuse

The stars of the acclaimed 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet, Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting, have begun legal action against the Paramount studio for sexual abuse, after being tricked by director Franco Zeffirelli into filming a nude scene when they were teenagers.

The British media The Times, assured that the actors, over 70 years old, filed a complaint in a Los Angeles court alleging sexual abuse, sexual harassment and fraud.

Their lawyers argue that given their suffering and the revenue the film has generated since its release, Hussey and Whiting are entitled to compensation of more than 500 million dollars.

The lawsuit, seen by the newspaper, states that Hussey, who was born in Argentina and moved to London as a child, then 15, and Whiting, then 16, were misled by director Franco Zeffirelli. Y filmed nude without their knowledge, in violation of federal and California laws against indecency and child exploitation.

According to As The Times has learned, Zeffirelli, who died in 2019, told the British actors they could wear flesh-colored underwear for a bedroom scene that appears at the end of the film. But nevertheless, on the morning of the shoot, the Italian filmmaker reportedly told them that they would only wear body makeup.

According to the lawsuit, Zeffirelli assured the actors that the camera would be positioned so as not to capture nudity.

The director told them that they had to act nude “or the film would flop” and their careers would suffer, the lawsuit says. The actors “believed they had no choice but to perform nude and with make-up as required.”

The Whiting’s bare buttocks and Hussey’s bare breasts they are shown briefly during the cutscene.

The film and its theme song were huge hits at the time and have been shown to generations of high school students studying Shakespeare’s work ever since.

The court file says that Hussey and Whiting have suffered emotional damage and mental anguish for decades, and that each had careers that did not reflect the success of the film.

Romeo and Juliet it was a critical and commercial success upon its release and was nominated for an Oscar for best picture, plus Zeffirelli earned a nomination for best director. He won Oscars for his cinematography and costume design.

An email seeking comment from Paramount representatives was not immediately returned.

The lawsuit was filed under a California law that temporarily suspends the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse, which has led to a spate of new lawsuits and the reactivation of many others that were previously dismissed.

Hussey defended the scene in a 2018 interview with Variety, which first reported on the lawsuit, marking the film’s 50th anniversary.

“No one my age had ever done that before.” he said, adding that Zeffirelli tastefully filmed it. “It was necessary for the movie.”

(With information from AP and The Times)

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