Madonna has dismissed reports Sean Penn abused her as completely false almost three decades after he was accused of assaulting her with a baseball bat.
In court documents filed in the New York Superior Court on Thursday and seen by Variety, the singer, who was married to the actor from 1985 to 1989, denied claims she had been abused by him in a statement.
Her declaration reads: ”I am aware of the allegations that have surfaced over the years accusing Sean of incidents of physical assault and abuse against me.”
Madonna’s declaration denies Penn has ever "struck me, 'tied me up,' or physically assaulted me”, branding any report stating otherwise as “completely outrageous, malicious, reckless and false”.
Penn is suing Lee Daniels, the co-creator of Empire, in a $10 million suit for allegedly comparing the actor to Terrence Howard in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
Daniels was defending Howard, who has been accused of assaulting his ex-wives Lori McCommas and Michelle Ghent in the past, telling the magazine: "That poor boy (Terrence) ain't done nothing different than Marlon Brando or Sean Penn, and all of a sudden he's some ... demon. That’s a sign of time, of race, of where we are right now in America.”
Madonna also praised Penn as “a caring, compassionate individual, as well as an extremely talented actor, creative artist, and philanthropist, including in connection with his work as CEO of the J/P Haitian Relief Organization”.
The Independent has contacted publicists for Madonna, Penn and Daniels for comment.
