Ukrainian mannequin Sawa Pontyjska claimed a Cannes Movie Competition safety guard “brutally restrained” her as she walked on the purple carpet and tried to enter the theater at this yr’s occasion, in keeping with a brand new lawsuit.
In an interview with BBC Information, Pontyjska — who was on the star-studded occasion as a presenter for Vogue TV — mentioned she filed a authorized criticism in opposition to Cannes organizers over the alleged assault on the “Marcello Mio” premiere.
Pontyjska claimed that the feminine safety guard, who additionally clashed with Kelly Rowland and Massiel Taveras, locked her in a “bear hug” on the prime of the Palais des Festivals staircase.
“I was trying to escape from this lock. I went down, and I started to run away on the stairs because it was the way back [out],” she advised the outlet.
“She was trying to push me in[side], so nobody can see what she’s doing with me. Then she kicked me out through the back door.”
Footage of Pontyjska’s heated alternate with the staffer went viral on TikTok, racking up thousands and thousands of views.
Within the clip, the feminine safety guard might be seen making an attempt to pull the mannequin inside whereas having her arms round her earlier than the pair alternate phrases on the almost empty purple carpet.
Pontyjska then crouches close to the bottom to interrupt free from the usher earlier than she is met with three males, one in all whom grabs her by the waist.
Pontyjska is accusing the pageant of “physical assault and psychological damage” and is searching for over $108,000 in damages, the outlet provides.
In her authorized criticism, Pontyjska alleged that the staffer’s bodily power prompted her “acute pain” and “psychological trauma.”
“I always dreamed of getting into Cannes Film Festival,” Pontyjska mentioned Wednesday on Instagram. “But then I was shocked about [the] rudeness and unreasonable use of physical force which I experienced on the red carpet with other international stars.”
“[Cannes] allowed the guards to use physical force on the red carpet guests.”
Web page Six has reached out to the Cannes Movie Competition for remark.
The identical staffer, who has not been named, beforehand made headlines for speeding Kelly Rowland and Massiel Taveras off the purple carpet, in addition to clashing with Ok-pop star Yoona.
When the identical occurred to Rowland earlier this month, the previous Future’s Little one member made headlines for scolding the usher forward of the “Marcello Mio” premiere.
The singer, 43, teared up recalling the interplay, telling AP Information, “That woman knows what happened. I know what happened. I have a boundary, and I stand by those boundaries.”
“There were other women that attended that carpet who did not quite look like me and they didn’t get scolded, or pushed off, or told to get off,” she added.
Dominican actress Massiel Taveras had the same expertise with the identical girl and was caught on digital camera shoving her.
Whereas there’s been no official phrase from the pageant concerning the repeated controversies, the unidentified staffer has been defended by one in all her colleagues through the Each day Mail.
“She was an usher working under a lot of pressure to keep people on the carpet moving, so as to stop crowds building up,” the unnamed co-worker advised the outlet.
“There was no pushing or shoving, or scolding. Security and safety are the priorities, along with keeping to strict timetables set according to contracts — even the celebrities have to stick to the rules.”
