Farrah Fawcett was shocked after discovering that a man who claims to be responsible for the cancer-stricken star's upcoming documentary filed a lawsuit claiming he lost control of the project.
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"Regarding the lawsuit, we are shocked by these allegations," the rep told Usmagazine.com in a statement Thursday. "Here's a woman who everyone knows has been ill and to do something like this is horrific."
Craig Nevius is suing Fawcett's longtime boyfriend Ryan O'Neal — whom Nevius said "physically threatened him" — and others, Us confirms. In the suit filed Wednesday, he claims he made a deal with Fawcett in 2004 to chronicle her life in Chasing Farrah, which aired, and has since worked with her on the current project, which is set to air Friday on NBC.
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"My intent today is the same as it always has been, since I started working with Farrah in 2004, and that is to creatively execute her artistic vision in projects that are a reflection of her," Nevius told Us Thursday. "And at the same time to safeguard her right of privacy to the extent that she wants it safeguarded or protected, which changes depending on what she is willing to share."
Nevius added that the defendants "began to take actions to wrongfully interfere with [his] contractual relationship with Ms. Fawcett" and that O'Neal made physical threats when he wouldn't relinquish control of the production company.
"This has been a very difficult time for Ryan O'Neal and Farrah's family and friends," Fawcett's rep told Us. "When you see something like this you have to question the motives of a person who can do something so hurtful during this very sensitive time in a person's life."
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The documentarian is also suing Alana Stewart, Fawcett's friend, who apparently called Nevius in April saying that Fawcett "wasn't doing well" and wouldn't officially sign a deal.
Despite the lawsuit, Stewart kept the focus on Fawcett's amazing resilience throughout her battle with cancer. "She's been amazing," Stewart said at the premiere of Farrah's Story in Beverly Hills on Wednesday. "I'm sure everyone who battles cancer has incredible strength and courage, but I have never experienced it so closely with anyone before. I'm just blown away by … her kindness for other people during the whole journey and her sense of humor."
She added: "I mean, she has maintained a sense of humor during this whole journey, which is quite amazing."
