Tyrese‘s Voltron Entertainment was suing Teddy Pendergrass‘ widow, Joan, for at least $1 million in damages over the abandoned rights to the late crooner’s life story.
via: Radar Online
Gibson is no longer going after Teddy Pendergrass’ widow. Documents obtained by RadarOnline.com show The Fast and Furious actor’s company filed to dismiss the $1 million lawsuit against Joan Pendergrass over an alleged derailed biopic about the late soul singer’s life.
Tyrese’s production company, Voltron Entertainment, filed a Notice of Voluntary Dismissal on December 26, dismissing the case without prejudice. That means he can refile the lawsuit at a later date if he chooses to do so.
RadarOnline.com has reached out to Tyrese’s team for comment.
As this outline reported, Tyrese sued Joan for $1 million in damages, claiming his production company secured the rights to her late husband’s life story in 2011. He said she signed off on the deal in exchange for a $450k investment.
Fast-forward to 2022, Tyrese claimed Joan refused to sign the paperwork to extend the deal and accused her of “still promoting and shopping the project within the motion picture industry” and using his name to do so despite “excluding him” from the biopic. The Sweet Lady singer argued she was harming his reputation by “making representations to third parties that Mr. Gibson is attached to star in the Project.”
Tyrese alleged that Joan’s conduct not only “irreparably harmed” the biopic, “but also significantly harmed Mr. Gibson’s and Voltron’s professional reputations after they staked their names, efforts and money on the Project to promote it in the industry for nearly a decade, only to have it derailed just as it was getting off the ground with Warner Bros.”
He also claimed that his company “suffered significant financial harm as a result of Joan’s conduct,” arguing Voltron “contributed several hundred thousand dollars to support and promote the Project in reliance on Joan’s repeated representation and promise, which they otherwise would not have contributed.”
Joan denied all allegations of wrongdoing, and argued that Tyrese’s company assigned Warner Bros the rights to Teddy’s life story in 2019, “thereby making Warner Bros. the successor-in-interest to Voltron with respect to the Option Agreement and Voltron no longer a party to the Option Agreement.”
Joan called Tyrese a “poor businessman” who was “incapable of getting a movie made.” RadarOnline.com exclusively revealed that Teddy’s widow demanded the lawsuit against her be thrown out last month — and it looks like she got her wish.
