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Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Terry Crews has filed a lawsuit against Adam Venit of media agency WME. The actor is seeking damages for assault, battery, sexual battery, sexual harassment, gender violence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and negligent retention and supervision, E! News reported. Crews has said Venit groped him in 2016.
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"It is now time to hold Venit accountable for his sexual predatory behavior and to hold WME accountable for its conduct in condoning, ratifying, and encouraging Venit's sexual predatory behavior," Crews, a former client of WME, said in the complaint filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.
Crews said on Twitter in October that the Hollywood executive groped him during an event while he was with his wife Rebecca. "This whole thing with Harvey Weinstein is giving me PTSD. Why? Because this kind of thing happened to ME," he recounted at the time.
"My wife n I were at a Hollywood function last year n a high level Hollywood executive came over 2 me and groped my privates," Crews said of how he was sexually assaulted.
Venit was suspended from WME following the allegations but was able to return to work. He is no longer the head of the company's motion picture group and instead serves as an agent.
Crews, in the complaint, further detailed what happened when he met Venit in 2016 and how Adam Sandler, a client of Venit, witnessed the incident and then later apologized to Crews for the agent's actions.
'"Adam, come get your boy! He's grabbing my nuts!"' the filling says Crews yelled to Sandler who "shook his head at Venit in disbelief as Venit just stood there giggling and smirking at Crews and his wife."
"Notwithstanding Adam Sandler's apology, Venit's sexual assault had an immediate negative impact on Crews in addition to the actual pain it caused, " it reads. "He also suffered from psychological issues as a result of the sexual assault and has stated that he has never felt more emasculated and objectified."
