Five months after Sean Penn filed a defamation lawsuit against Empire co-creator Lee Daniels, Daniels has filed a motion asking a California judge to drop the case.
Philly.com reports that Daniels issued the request earlier this week.
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“Dismissal is required because the core of the complaint—that Daniels wronged Penn by falsely comparing Penn to someone else—is constitutionally (to quote Penn’s iconic movie character Jeff Spicoli) ‘bogus,’” Daniels’ complaint alleges.
Penn filed the lawsuit in September after Daniels dismissed abuse claims against Terrence Howard, comparing him to Penn.
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“[Terrence] ain’t done nothing different than Marlon Brando or Sean Penn, and all of a sudden, he’s some f-ing demon,” Daniels said. “That’s a sign of the time, of race, of where we are right now in America.”
In November, Daniels was ordered to pay Penn’s legal fees, though the exact amount has not been publicized.