Evan Rachel Wood Says Marilyn Manson 'Horrifically Abused' Her And 4 Other Women Make Similar Allegations

Evan Rachel Wood and four other women named rock star Marilyn Manson as their alleged abuser in Instagram posts on Monday that accused him of physical attacks, brainwashing, and manipulation. 

The Emmy-nominated actor met the musician when she was in her late teens and he was in his late 30s. They dated on and off in the late 2000s and became engaged to be married in 2010, but split later that year. Over the past decade, the “Westworld” star has been an activist on domestic violence issues, and has discussed past instances in which she said she was raped by two men, but never named her alleged abusers. 

“The name of my abuser is Brian Warner, also known to the world as Marilyn Manson,” Wood wrote on Monday. “He started grooming me when I was a teenager and horrifically abused me for years. I was brainwashed and manipulated into submission. I am done living in fear of retaliation, slander, or blackmail. I am here to expose this dangerous man and call out the many industries that have enabled him, before he ruins any more lives. I stand with the many victims who will no longer be silent.”

Evan Rachel Wood alleges that ex Marilyn Manson subjected her to years of abuse. Photo: Getty Images

Following Wood’s post early Monday morning, four other women have posted similar statements accusing Warner of sexual and psychological abuse, intimidation, and coercion. Ashley Walters, Sarah McNeilly, Ashley Lindsay Morgan, and a woman going by Gabriella on the platform all named Warner as their alleged abuser in Instagram posts, which detailed experiences they say they had with him over the past 12 years. 

Warner has not yet publicly addressed Monday’s allegations.

Wood testified in 2018 before a House Judiciary subcommittee on her experiences as a rape and domestic violence survivor in an effort to get the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights Act passed nationwide. She did not name her alleged abusers at the time. 

"My experience with domestic violence was this," she told Congress. "The toxic mental, physical and sexual abuse which started slow but escalated over time, including threats against my life, severe gaslighting and brainwashing, waking up to the man that claimed to love me, raping what he believed to be my unconscious body.”

Wood said that she has struggled with self-harm, depression, addiction, agoraphobia, and night terrors in the aftermath of the alleged abuse. 

In 2018, Wood testified before the California Senate in support of the Phoenix Act, which she helped to create after learning that the statute of limitations for the crimes she said were committed against her had passed. The California bill proposed extending the statute of limitations on domestic violence felonies from three to five years. It also requires police to undergo further training on violence perpetrated by partners. It was passed into law in 2019. 

Following this testimony, Warner was asked about his relationship with Wood during an interview with the British music magazine Metal Hammer — at which point he reportedly hung up on the magazine’s writer. Afterward, his representatives issued a statement on his behalf regarding the former couple's relationship.

“Personal testimony is just that, and we think it’s inappropriate to comment on that,” they wrote while pointing to older interviews where Wood said that she appreciates “everything [Warner] taught me” and that the two “weren’t right for each other.” 

Warner, who is also an actor, painter, and writer, rose to fame and courted controversy in the mid-1990s as Marilyn Manson albums “Antichrist Superstar” and “Mechanical Animals” crossed over to the mainstream. The band has three platinum and three gold albums.