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Russell Simmons sued for defamation by former Def Jam executive who accused him of sexual assault
Hip-hop impresario and entrepreneur Russell Simmons is being sued for defamation by Drew Dixon, a former Def Jam Recordings executive who also has accused Simmons of sexual assault and harassment during her time at the label in the 1990s.
The complaint, filed Thursday in New York Supreme Court, claims that last December Simmons “subjected Ms. Dixon to public ridicule, contempt, and disgrace by, among other things, calling Ms. Dixon a liar in published statements with the malicious intent of discrediting and further damaging Ms. Dixon worldwide.” The suit further alleges that Simmons has “continued this pattern of defamation” through January of this year.
A representative for Simmons could not immediately be reached for comment. Simmons has previously denied Dixon’s and other accusers’ allegations.
It was the second lawsuit filed against Simmons this week.
On Tuesday, another woman, identified as a Jane Doe, sued Russell for rape in a separate complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The accuser, who said she worked as a senior music executive at Def Jam, alleged that she was “sexually harassed, assaulted, sexually battered, and raped” by Simmons when she worked at the label during the 1990s.
“I have never engaged in nonconsensual sex. I would not, did not, and never will,” said Simmons in a statement to The Times in regards to the Jane Doe suit. A representative for Simmons said that the music mogul “has voluntarily taken numerous lie detector tests all of which support his statement.”
In 1994, Dixon, then 23, began working at Def Jam as director of A&R (artists and repertoire), in what she called “her dream job,” according to the suit.
At the label, Dixon garnered immediate success, conceiving and spearheading chart-topping songs such as “I’ll Be There for You — You’re All I Need” by Method Man, featuring Mary J. Blige.
But Dixon claims she was subjected to “persistent, nightmarish sexual harassment that culminated in a violent sexual assault by the man she once admired,” Simmons, her boss and co-founder of Def Jam.
Simmons “fostered a chaotic workplace environment where he thrived on the sexual exploitation of individuals who were dependent on access to his opinion and approval in order to perform their jobs and succeed in their careers,” states the complaint.
According to her suit, Dixon claims Simmons’ abuse began as soon as she started working at the label.
Dixon alleges that despite constantly rebuffing his alleged advances, Simmons “routinely attempted to grope her and kiss her.” Once he “forcibly pushed” her into a broom closet at a restaurant where he tried to kiss her, the suit says. Dixon alleges that Simmons “regularly exposed his erect penis” and “talked about how much she turned him on.”
Then she alleges that in 1995, Simmons raped her in his Manhattan apartment after she ran into him on the street. Dixon told him she was going to an ATM and he “ordered her into his car.” Once they arrived at his apartment, she said he asked her to come upstairs to listen to a new CD.
However, once inside his apartment, when Dixon opened the CD tray, she found it was empty. “Moments later Mr. Simmons grabbed Ms. Dixon from behind. He was naked except for a condom. He proceeded to pin her down on the bed and violently rape her,” according to the suit.
After the alleged assault, Dixon resigned from Def Jam.
According to Dixon’s complaint, Simmons has engaged in a “concerted and malicious campaign to discredit” her “and to so damage her reputation that Ms. Dixon’s factual reporting of what he did to her would not be credited.”
Dixon cites several statements Simmons made in a podcast interview with journalist Graham Bensinger that she claims reference her own public comments concerning her abuse allegations.
For instance, during the podcast, Simmons said, “Yeah, [rape is] a serious word, but I think they’ve changed the meaning,” according to the complaint.
“Ms. Dixon has taken enough abuse,” said Dixon’s lawyer Sigrid McCawley in a statement. “Not only was she violently raped by Russell Simmons — profoundly disrupting her personal and professional life — but after she tried to move forward and heal, he then further abused her by publicly proclaiming that she lied about the rape in search of ‘fame.’ Mr. Simmons has used his public platform to re-traumatize and terrorize Ms. Dixon, and the time has now come to hold him accountable for his defamatory statements and to end this cycle of abuse.”
Last November Dixon filed suit against music executive Antonio “L.A.” Reid for sexual assault and harassment, under the Adult Survivors Act.
After Dixon left Def Jam, she went to Arista, where she was vice president of A&R. Reid ran Arista and Epic Records.
In the suit, filed in federal district court in Manhattan, Dixon alleges that Reid “sexually harassed Ms. Dixon and refused to allow her to succeed unless she acquiesced to his demand to be alone and in close proximity to her, where he would create the opportunity to sexually assault her on two separate occasions.”
At the time of the filing, a representative for Reid did not respond to requests for comment.
Dixon first came forward with her abuse allegations against Simmons and Reid in a 2017 New York Times article. She was one of three women who accused Simmons of rape, claiming that he engaged in a pattern of sexual assault and harassment that derailed their careers and damaged their self-confidence.
Three years later, Dixon and other women of color were featured in the documentary “On the Record,” which further detailed abuse claims against Simmons and others in the record industry.
The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival under a cloud of controversy.
Weeks before Sundance, Oprah Winfrey, one of “On the Record’s” producers, pulled her support from the film and removed her executive producer title from the project. Winfrey asserted that her decision was based on discussions with several individuals who found the film problematic and raised questions about Dixon’s account.
The move quashed the documentary’s distribution deal with Apple TV+. It is currently streaming on HBO Max.
Staff writers August Brown and Alexandra Del Rosario contributed to this report.
As Hollywood has fractured over the proposed merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery, AMC Entertainment Holdings Chief Executive Adam Aron is throwing his support behind David Ellison.
The movie theater chief said he trusts that Ellison, Paramount’s CEO, will hold to his promise that the combined company will release 30 films a year — 15 each from Paramount and Warner Bros.
Many industry executives and other theater operators have questioned whether that goal is realistic, particularly given the cost cuts that are expected to commence after the deal closes. Exhibitors in particular fear that a decline in film releases will erase some of the progress made at the box office since the pandemic.
“Adam Aron and AMC are big fans of David Ellison,” Aron said during an interview Wednesday afternoon in Las Vegas, where he was attending the CinemaCon trade convention. “We respect his talent as a filmmaker and a movie executive, and we believe in the promises that he has made to increase the number of movies being made by Paramount and Warner Bros.”
Aron added that he trusts Ellison will respect calls to keep films in theaters for 45 days before they’re available for premium purchase at home and much later, on streaming services.
That strategy, known as windowing, became a more contentious issue after the pandemic when some studios began to reduce the amount of time films were in cinemas before audiences could view them at home.
“We’re enthusiastic that David will fulfill his promises,” Aron said. “And that in the end, this will prove to be a good thing for our company and our industry.”
He added that he hopes current Warner Bros. film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy “continue to have the opportunity to do great work” at that studio. The pair led Warner Bros. to 30 Oscar nominations — more than any other studio this year — and 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
After a difficult last few years, Aron said he feels like the theatrical business has “finally turned a corner.”
So far this year, domestic box office revenue is up more than 20% compared with the same time period last year, bolstering hopes across the industry that 2026 will mark a rebound from the downturn of the pandemic.
Last year, AMC saw a 2.1% decrease in attendance compared to 2024. But this year’s strong lineup of films has given Aron confidence that the company‘s revenue and earnings will rise this year.
The company is also working to pay down the debt it took on during the pandemic. The company had as much as $6 billion in debt in 2020 and is now down to $4 billion, Aron said.
“The big news of 2026 for us, in light of the rising box office, in light of rising EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization], and in paying down debt and extending maturities, I think we will have dramatically strengthened our balance sheet,” he said.
Aron also confirmed reports that Netflix Co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos met with a group of movie theater chiefs in Las Vegas, a discussion he described as “introductory in nature” rather than about dealmaking since it was in a large group forum.
Netflix and AMC previously had a complicated relationship over the streaming service’s long-standing resistance to traditional theatrical releases.
But the two companies have recently partnered on several projects, including a Halloween weekend showing of the animated hit “KPop Demon Hunters,” New Year’s Eve screenings of the “Stranger Things” series finale and the first two episodes of the Netflix show “One Piece.”
Aron said AMC thoroughly embraced all three projects, and that both companies were pleased with the results.
“Both AMC and Netflix have individually said publicly that we hope this is the beginning of collaboration, and that we each expected more good joint projects to come in the future,” he said. “What those will be, I don’t even know yet, but I’m optimistic that we’ll be doing more things together with Netflix in the months and years ahead.”
Paramount Skydance Chief Executive David Ellison made his case directly to theater owners Thursday, pledging to release a minimum of 30 films a year from the combined Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery company during a speech at the CinemaCon trade convention in Las Vegas.
“I wanted to look every single one of you in the eye and give you my word,” Ellison said in a brief on-stage speech, adding that Paramount has already nearly doubled its film lineup for this year with 15 planned releases, up from eight in 2025.
He also said all films will remain in theaters exclusively for 45 days, starting Thursday. Films will then go to streaming platforms in 90 days. The amount of time that films stay in theaters — known as windowing — has been a controversial topic for theater owners, as some studios reduced that period during the pandemic. Theater operators have said the shortened window has trained audiences to wait to watch films at home and cuts into theater revenues.
“I have dedicated the last 20 years of my life to elevating and preserving film,” said Ellison, clad in a dark jacket and shirt with blue jeans. “And at Paramount, we want to tell even more great stories on the big screen — stories that make people think, laugh, dream, wonder and feel — and we want to share them with as broad an audience as possible.”
Ellison’s CinemaCon appearance comes as more than 1,000 Hollywood actors and creatives have signed a letter opposing Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Supporters of the letter have said the deal would reduce competition in the industry and “further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape.”
Some theater operators have also questioned whether the combined company could achieve its goal of releasing 30 films a year, particularly after the cost cuts that are expected after the merger closes.
“People can speculate all they want — but I am standing here today telling you personally that you can count on our complete commitment,” Ellison said. “And we’ll show you we mean it.”
The speech came after a star-studded video directed by “Wicked: For Good” director Jon M. Chu that was shot on the Paramount lot on Melrose Avenue and showcased directors and actors including Issa Rae, Will Smith, Chris Pratt, James Cameron and Timothée Chalamet that are working with the company.
The video closed with “Top Gun” actor Tom Cruise perched atop the Paramount water tower.
“As you saw, the Paramount lot is alive again,” Ellison said after the video. “And we could not be more excited.”
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