Four years after Perri “Pebbles” Reid slapped Viacom with a $40 million defamation lawsuit over her portrayal in VH1’s CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story, the case has been settled.
A trial was set to begin in federal court in Georgia on Sept. 24, but the case ended Friday after the two sides reached a settlement, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
CrazySexyCool debuted in October 2013. The premiere averaged 4.5 million viewers, making it VH1’s highest-rated original movie ever.
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The film explored the formation of 1990s R&B trio TLC, and the ups and downs of its members Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas.
Pebbles, a singer and business manager married to music producer Antonio “L.A.” Reid at the time, signed TLC to a contract.
After CrazySexyCool aired on VH1, she filed a lawsuit in 2014 saying the movie depicted her as a
“conniving and dishonest business woman who hoodwinked three innocent girls and exploited their talent for her own personal gain.”
U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen disputed some of Pebbles’ claims, but said there were scenes that supported her defamation complaint.
Among the scenes the judge said could be taken to trial – an instance showing Pebbles’ character pressuring group members to sign contracts without sufficient time to review the documents, and claims that she secretly deducted expenses while only paying TLC $25 a week.
The judge said because the story was told from the group’s point of view, there may have been bias against Pebbles.
Terms of the settlement are confidential.
