Jared Leto really did not want the world to know he “doesn’t give a fuck about” Taylor Swift, and now he’s taking legal action: A day after publicly apologizing to Swift for an uncomfortable video that TMZ shared on Monday that showed the actor/singer shading Swift’s music, The Hollywood Reporter now reports that Leto is suing TMZ for copyright infringement. He alleges that TMZ knowingly “stole” the video by promising to pay $2,000 for it despite the videographer warning TMZ that he or she did not have legal permission to sell the video to the Warner Bros.–owned site. Just after the video went live, Leto says the videographer requested that TMZ not publish the footage, but as of Wednesday afternoon, the video has not been taken down. Leto is calling TMZ’s actions an “invasion of privacy” that’s “both legally and morally wrong.” Here’s Leto’s statement on the lawsuit:
“Last Sunday, I was alerted that TMZ had acquired personal and private video footage of me in my home and that they were planning to leak it on their site. My team notified TMZ immediately that I fully owned the footage and that their source had absolutely no rights to sell it. They chose to post it anyway. Let’s be clear. This was stolen footage. This was an invasion of privacy. And it was both legally and morally wrong. Regardless of who we are, we should all be able to talk freely in the privacy of our own homes without the fear that our unfiltered thoughts or actions will get broadcast to the world. We have the right to privacy and security and when we don’t have protections in place to safeguard those things, we lose the freedom to speak loudly and clearly - right or wrong - about anything and everything we choose to. I have chosen to file this lawsuit not because I want to, but in hopes it will encourage more people to stop trafficking in stolen goods, to follow proper legal procedure and so that it may motivate additional consideration for the harm these acts can create, especially when the only intention is to simply further the bottom line for the companies and corporations that commit these acts.”
