14 DAY TRIAL // Sean Penn might be a lot of things that the world doesn’t know about, but a wife beater he is not. So he’s going after Lee Daniels, the creator of the hit series “Empire,” for comparing him to Terrence Howard, who is a proven wife beater, in a recent interview.
According to court documents obtained by TMZ, Penn is asking for no less than $10 million (€8.97 million) in damages from Daniels, on the grounds that the claim that he abused his ex-wife Madonna back in the ‘80s is false.
Lee Daniels defends Terrence Howard, throws Sean Penn under the bus
In a recent interview to promote the new season of Empire, Lee Daniels talked about one of its leads, the often-controversial Terrence Howard. He has been married 3 times and accused of assaulting 3 women, 2 of whom were married to him at the time.
In addition to his reputation as a wife beater, he also has the reputation of being very difficult on set and in private, with a highly flammable temper that makes him a rather dangerous man to upset. Many of these claims seemed to be confirmed by his latest Rolling Stone profile, in which he ranted against Robert Downey Jr. and boasted about revolutionizing the world with his new brand of math he called “Terryology.”
In his defense, Daniels said, “[Terrence] ain't done nothing different than Marlon Brando or Sean Penn, and all of a sudden he’s some [expletive]-in’ demon... That’s a sign of the time, of race, of where we are right now in America.”
So the hatred the world felt for Howard had nothing to do with his past behavior, and everything to do with racism, because, obviously, Penn and Brando did the same and they never got called out for it.
Sean Penn won’t have anyone tarnish his good name
Sean Penn isn’t amused by the comparison and having his name out there. Despite reports that, back when he was still married to Madonna, one of their Thanksgiving dinners ended with a visit from the police after he roughed her up, there were never any charges filed against him.
In the eyes of the law, he is an innocent man, he’s never done anything wrong. The same goes for Brando, Penn’s attorney writes in court documents.
“Daniels’ defense of Howard (and his improper invocation of two of the greatest actors and humanitarians of our time, Brando and Penn, in doing so) is apparently part of a misguided campaign to profit and further bolster and brand his show ‘Empire,’” the documents read.
Penn wants a judge to award him a fortune in damages because Daniels’ comments were “reckless and malicious” and part of a long series of false claims that have tarnished his reputation throughout the years he’s been working in showbiz.