BACKGROUND
In 2001, at 14-years-old, Raquel Bolleau secured the lead in the Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM), “The Poof Point,” a dream role for a child actor. DCOMs were a known springboard for child actors, often launching them to superstardom. As alleged in the complaint, Ms. Bolleau’s dream job turned into a nightmare after she was repeatedly raped, sexually assaulted, sexually abused, and sexually harassed during filming.
As alleged in the complaint below, Disney not only failed to take any action to protect Mr. Bolleau, the company and its executives facilitated and concealed the severe sexual abuse of Ms. Bolleau.
Time and again, Disney allegedly neglected to adhere to the child labor laws meant to protect Ms. Bolleau, including separating Ms. Bolleau from her on-set guardian. Disney executives also frequently made sexually explicit comments about Ms. Bolleau’s body and discussed the sex lives of other Disney child actors in the presence of other adults; however, none of this behavior was reported.
After her experience filming “The Poof Point,” Ms. Bolleau has struggled with the severe trauma, pain, and distress of following the abuse and Disney’s repeated failures.
Statement by Douglas Wigdor and Jane Kim:
“Over the last decade, countless child actors have come forward to bravely share their experiences of abuse by adults in entertainment. As former government prosecutors, our message to the entertainment industry is simple: This conduct is inexcusable, and those involved—directly or indirectly—must be held accountable.”
The full complaint for Raquel Lee Bolleau v. The Walt Disney Company may be found here.
Please reach out to Wigdor Partners Douglas Wigdor (dwigdor@wigdorlaw.com) or Jane Kim (jkim@wigdorlaw.com) or Director of Marketing Tess Neudeck (tneudeck@wigdorlaw.com) with any questions.