Director-Producer Denies|’Sex Ring’ Allegations

LOS ANGELES (CN) - Filmmaker Bryan Singer denied claims that he was part of a "sordid sex ring" that sexually abused teenage male actors and models in the 1990s.

Michael Egan sued Singer in Hawaii Federal Court on April 16, alleging intentional infliction of emotional distress, battery, assault, and invasion of privacy by unreasonable intrusion.

The lawsuit claims that Singer had forced the then-17-year-old actor to take cocaine, and anally raped him multiple times between 1998 and 1999.

Egan also sued Hollywood executives David Neuman, Gary Goddard, and Garth Ancier in separate filings at the same court.

All defendants have issued statements denying the allegations.

On Thursday, Singer announced that he would forgo publicity events for his upcoming movie "X-Men: Days of Future Past." The filmmaker said Egan's allegations are "outrageous, vicious and completely false" and called the lawsuit a "sick twisted shakedown."

"I do not want these fictitious claims to divert any attention from 'X-Men: Days of Future Past,'" Singer said in a statement. "This fantastic film is a labor of love and one of the greatest experiences of my career. So, out of respect to all of the extraordinary contributions from the incredibly talented actors and crew involved, I've decided not to participate in the upcoming media events for the film. However, I promise when this situation is over, the facts will show this to be the sick twisted shakedown it is. I want to thank fans, friends and family for all their amazing and overwhelming support."

Egan claims in his lawsuit that in the late 1990s he was employed by the now-defunct Internet startup Digital Entertainment Network to attend "sordid parties" at an Encino mansion, owned by the company's founder Marc Collins-Rector.

Egan claims Singer anally raped him several times at the mansion and again when Egan visited another estate in Hawaii.

Singer "manipulated his power, wealth, and position in the entertainment industry to sexually abuse and exploit the underage plaintiff through the use of drugs, alcohol, threats, and inducements which resulted in plaintiff suffering catastrophic psychological and emotional injuries," the 12-page complaint states. "Defendant Singer did so as part of a group of adult males similarly positioned in the entertainment industry that maintained and exploited boys in a sordid sex ring. A Hollywood mogul must not use his position to sexually exploit underage actors."

Egan claims that when he was 17 he stayed at another estate in Hawaii where Singer promised him a role in an X-Men movie. In one incident, Singer shoved a "handful of cocaine onto plaintiff's face" and anally raped him, the graphic federal court filing states.

Though Collins-Rector is not a party to the lawsuits, he is accused of threatening Egan at gunpoint at the Encino mansion and sexually abusing him.

Egan reportedly was a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed against Collins-Rector in 2000.

In 2001, Los Angeles Times reported a $4.5-million default judgment against Digital Entertainment Network, by that time bankrupt, and Collins-Rector and two other principals, Chad Shackley and Brock Pierce, after they failed to respond to employees' claims of rape, assault and death threats.

Collins-Rector was also the subject of a sex molestation lawsuit filed by a teen in New Jersey who settled the lawsuit, the Times reported in the same article.

Collins-Rector pleaded guilty in 2004 to charges of transporting five underage boys across state lines to commit illegal sex acts, according to a Thursday article in the Times.

Egan wants at least $75,000 in damages for each count against Singer, who came to prominence after the release of the crime thriller "The Usual Suspects" in 1995 and is known for his work on Marvel's "X-Men" franchise.

Egan is represented by Mark Gallagher of Hawaii and Jeff Herman of Boca Raton.

"I've heard from dozens and dozens alleging they were abused in Hollywood as minors," Herman told the Times. "We're investigating those cases. I expect I'll be filing many more (lawsuits). I intend to expose every Hollywood pedophile and predator I can identify."

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