James Hunter—the background actor who sued Mia Goth for battery and director Ti West and A24 for wrongful termination earlier this year—has come forward with new details regarding his alleged experience on the MaXXXine set. In his complaint, originally reported in January by TMZ, Hunter claims that Goth “intentionally” kicked him in the head, causing a concussion. She then allegedly proceeded to approach him in the bathroom where she “taunted, mocked, and belittled” him. The outlet claims that Hunter is suing for at least $500,000 in damages.
Now that the film is out in theaters, Hunter has provided more details about his alleged experience to the website Dread Central. The actor claims that he was the only extra on set for this particular night shoot and that Ti West instructed him to lie on the ground outdoors without padding, where he was bitten by ants and mosquitoes. The team proceeded to shoot multiple takes between Hunter and Goth. “On the fourth or fifth take, I’m laying on the left side of my ear,” he explained. “I hear her; she runs by me, and I hear her boot clamp down right next to my ear. And I thought, oh, well, it’s dark out. She’s not really getting a beat on exactly where I’m laying.”
Hunter then said he alerted the second-second assistant of the incident, which led to a “noticeable pause” before production resumed. “In the very next take, it is the same thing, except I got kicked, and I felt it,” Hunter said. “I heard the dirt and the leaves or grass rustling next to me, so I knew that she knew where I was. She runs up to me, but instead of stopping… I feel and hear her shuffle right before she gets to me. I get kicked.”
Hunter says he was in “tremendous pain” from the kick, but didn’t want to cause too big of a fuss because he had been promised multiple days of paid work. Shortly after, he alleges that he retreated to a secluded area to use a porta-potty, where he forgot to lock the door. As he was using the bathroom, he says that Goth pushed open the door, and said, verbatim, “Nobody will believe you because you’re nothing. Get the fuck off my set, you big baby.” Hunter claims to have written the words down immediately so he wouldn’t forget.
Hunter’s lawsuit goes on to allege that he felt so lightheaded on his drive home that he had to pull over his car twice, and that he was later informed by production that he was not to return for the remaining two days of his shoot (via Variety).
In response to Hunter’s allegations, a representative from A24 provided the following statement to Dread Central: “The claims made in the complaint are simply not true. As this is in active litigation, we cannot say more at this time but continue to vigorously defend Mia and the entire filmmaking team against these extremely baseless allegations.”