Former child star Raquel Lee Bolleau reached a settlement with The Poof Point costar Mark Curry, who played her onscreen father, years before she filed a lawsuit against The Walt Disney Co. for negligence.
Bolleau, 39, reached a confidential settlement with Curry, 65, in 2015, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Gloria Allred, who is known for representing accusers against prominent individuals in sexual misconduct claims, represented Bolleau in the resolution, the outlet reported. No financial terms or specific agreements reached by the parties have been made public.
According to the report, Bolleau has since filed a new lawsuit against Disney, claiming that the studio failed to intervene when she was repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted by a “middle-aged, male employee who was involved in the filming of the movie.” Bolleau was 14 at the time. She did not name her alleged abuser in the suit and it’s unclear if the past settlement is related to her claims against Disney.
Bolleau alleged that the man groomed and then assaulted her in his room at a Salt Lake City hotel where the cast and crew were staying during production, as well as on a flight back to Los Angeles. Additionally, he allegedly “regularly whispered sexually explicit and harassing comments” into her ear while on set and “used hugs to get close to her.”
He also allegedly “regularly made sexually explicit jokes and commentary on the set” around minors, including “sexually explicit comments about” Bolleau’s body.
Bolleau further claimed that she was allowed to be separated from her on-set guardian “for the vast majority of each day.”
According to the lawsuit, this alleged harassment occurred “in plain view of the cast and crew and could be heard by the sound technicians managing the cast’s microphones,” but “no one at Disney intervened.”
When Bolleau’s performance declined due to the alleged abuse, Disney execs allegedly attacked her “changed behavior and trauma response” and accused her of “being ‘out of control.’” The studio also allegedly threatened to, and ultimately did, cancel her role in a separate film.
Us reached out to reps for Curry and Disney for comment.
Bolleau is being represented by Doug Wigdor, a prominent plaintiffs’ employment and sexual-misconduct lawyer who previously worked with Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex Cassie Ventura.
“Over the last decade, countless child actors have come forward to bravely share their experiences of abuse by adults in entertainment,” Wigdor said in a statement. “As former government prosecutors, our message to the entertainment industry is simple: This conduct is inexcusable, and those involved — directly or indirectly — must be held accountable.”
The Poof Point, a 2001 Disney Channel Original Movie based on the children’s novel of the same name by Ellen Weiss and Mel Friedman, starred Curry as scientist Norton Ballard, who invents a time machine with wife Marigold Ballard (Dawnn Lewis). The time machine malfunctions and causes the couple to become de-aged, leaving their children, Eddie (Tahj Mowry) and Marie (Bolleau), to fix the problem before their parents’ mental ages reach a point before they were born, which would cause them to disappear.
Curry is also known for starring in the ‘90s ABC sitcom Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper. Bolleau, meanwhile, appeared on Nickelodeon’s The Amanda Show, The Proud Family and Snowfall.
Bolleau also participated in the 2024 docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, in which she discussed her treatment as a Black performer on The Amanda Show.
