LOS ANGELES (CN) - "Gossip Girl" Leighton Meester's real life mother countersued her daughter, demanding $3 million to settle a promise that the actress said she never made in the first place. Leighton Meester, who plays Blair Waldorf on the "Gossip Girl" TV show, sued her mom first.
Leighton Meester's mother, Constance Meester, sued her daughter four days after the actress sued mom, asking the court to declare that she did not owe her mother money, as her mom claimed.
Because the women share the same last name, Courthouse News will refer to them by their first names in this article.
In her complaint, also in Superior Court, Constance claims that contrary to Leighton's lawsuit, her estranged daughter did promise to pay her $10,000 a month for life, but mom says she's willing to accept a lump sum of $3 million to settle it.
In the first lawsuit, Leighton said she was paying her mom beaucoup dough to pay for Leighton's brother's brain surgery and post-operative care. But Leighton said she cut her mom off when she learned that Constance was stealing her son's pain medication, abusing alcohol and spending money on plastic surgery and Botox injections for herself.
Constance tells a different story. She sued her daughter and her loan-out corporation, My Dog Jack Productions, and Leighton's managers, Scott Feinstein and Summit Business Management.
According to the mother's complaint: "Leighton intentionally ceased payments to Constance under the terms of a settlement and support agreement because Leighton could not convince her younger brother, Alexander, cancer survivor who recently underwent brain surgery, to leave his mother and move to New York City. Leighton, Summit and Feinstein canceled all payments and Constance's health insurance. Since Alexander requires 24 hour care from Constance, no alternative source of income is possible. As a direct result of Leighton's breach, there are no funds to feed and care for Alexander. No funds are available to pay utilities and the ordinary basic requirements for sustaining life."
Constance describes herself as a single mother who sacrificed everything to support her daughter's desire to become an actress. "The funds Constance dedicated to this endeavor exceeded $230,000," Constance says. "Private schools and acting classes were paid for by Constance. Constance took Leighton on interviews and auditions and sacrificed her happiness and that of Leighton's brothers to further her daughter's career. At all relevant times, Constance managed Leighton's career."
After Leighton was signed to star in "Gossip Girl," her career took off. Constance says trouble began when Leighton took control of Intentional Productions Inc., (IPI) a company Constance owned and operated to handle Leighton's career.
The mom claims her daughter asked Constance to meet with defendant Feinstein in December 2008. "Feinstein told Constance to sign some paper so he could prepare tax returns for IPI. Constance did so. By the beginning of 2009, funds in the amount of $240,000 were looted out of the IPI account," the mom says. "Leighton's relationship with Constance was nonexistent.