Paltrow’s lawyerStephen Owensasked Sanderson about previously telling reporters that the Oscar winner was like “King Kong” when she allegedly crashed into him — and Sanderson admitted he misspoke at the time.
Back in January 2019, when Sanderson first brought a lawsuit against Paltrow and asked for $3.1 million in damages, he said during apress conferencethat he “heard this just hysterical screaming like … King Kong in the jungle or something.”
Gwyneth Paltrow; Terry Sanderson.shutterstock (2)
“Did you … compare my client to ‘King Kong coming out of the jungle,’ yes or no?” asked Owens on Wednesday. Sanderson said, “That was not my intention. … I’m not sure. Probably. Sounds familiar. I dispute my intentions, that’s all. … I meant to say King Kong just chased somebody out of the jungle. That’s what I meant.”
Rick Bowmer/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
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Owens also asked if Sanderson referred to Paltrow as “Godzilla” in a conversation with his daughter, but he said he didn’t remember that.
He added that it was the “very best hysterical scream you’ve ever heard.”
Sanderson previously testified in this trial that he heard a “blood-curdling scream” before he claims Paltrow crashed into him. Paltrow testified that Sanderson was the one who crashed into her from behind, admitting that for a “split second” she thought it was a “practical joke” or possibly a sexual assault.
Rick Bowmer/AP/Shutterstock
Paltrow said she “absolutely froze” and became upset when she knew what happened and screamed at Sanderson using profanity. “Yes I did. I apologize for my bad language,” she told the jury. “I said, ‘You skied directly into my F-ing back,’ and he said, ‘Oh, sorry, sorry, I’m sorry.’ I was pretty upset.”
Sanderson is suing for $300,000 in damages, while Paltrow is countersuing for $1 and legal fees over the collision that happened at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah.
Jurors heard from the defense’s expert witnesses and family members about how Sanderson experienced an “acute” decline in his health after the accident. When Paltrow took the stand, she said she feels “very sorry” for Sanderson: “It seems like he’s had a very difficult life. But I did not cause the accident, so I cannot be at fault for anything that subsequently happened to him.”
The jurywill begin deliberations in the civil trialon Thursday after closing statements from both sides.
source: people.com
