‘X-Men’ Director Bryan Singer to Pay $150,000 over Rape Allegation

Hollywood director Bryan Singer will pay out $150,000 to settle with a man who claims that the Bohemian Rhapsody director raped him in 2003.

In 2017, Cesar Sanchez-Guzman sued the X-Men director, accusing him of sexually assaulting him at a party in Seattle when he was 17-year-old. Singer has maintained his innocence.

According to Sanchez-Guzman’s suit, Bryan Singer “lured Cesar into a room, shut the door and demanded that Cesar perform oral sex. When [Sanchez-Guzman] refused, Bryan Singer forced him into acts of oral and anal sex.” The suit added that Singer threatened the young man but also said, “he could help Cesar get into acting as long as Cesar never said anything about the incident.” Sanchez-Guzman also alleged that Singer said he had the power to “ruin someone’s reputation” if crossed.

Singer has denied even knowing Sanchez-Guzman, and his lawyer reminds the media that the settlement is a “business decision” and is not an admission of guilt.

“Mr. Singer has denied even knowing this individual, let alone allegedly having interacted with him more than 15 years ago,” attorney Andrew Brettler said in a statement. “The decision to resolve the matter with the bankruptcy trustee was purely a business one, as litigation costs would well exceed the amount requested by the trustee to pay off the creditors who were owed money when the debtor filed for bankruptcy.”

Much of the $150,000 will be handed over to Sanchez-Guzman’s creditors in his bankruptcy proceedings. About $61,000 will go to pay student loans and other debts. The accuser’s attorney says only a nominal amount of the settlement will end up in his client’s pocket.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.