The singer filed a lawsuit against Nigel Lythgoe and the show’s production companies, alleging that the producer sexually assaulted her during one of the early seasons of American Idol and years later when she was working as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance. In the court documents, Paula Abdul alleges that Lythgoe subjected her to “verbal harassment and bullying” as well as “sexual abuse”.
Before she was cast as a judge on American Idol, the complaint said Abdul met with executives and producers for the show after her business manager was approached by Fox regarding a potential opportunity to appear as a judge. But during the meeting, the suit alleges Abdul was “verbally insulted and belittled by Lythgoe.”
Though she had concerns at the time, the complaint states that Abdul was “hoping his conduct was a one-time event, and decided to take a chance on the show”. It was later that Abdul alleges Lythgoe sexually assaulted her in an elevator of a hotel they were both staying at while traveling for one of the singing competition show’s auditions. The suit doesn’t give a year the incident happened but claims it was during the show’s “initial seasons”.
In tears, Abdul called one of her representatives to inform them of the assault but ultimately decided not to take action for fear that Lythgoe would have her fired from American Idol.”