Trent Reznor Condemns Marilyn Manson, Refutes Story From His Autobiography
In the wake of abuse allegations against Marilyn Manson from the rocker's ex-fiancée Evan Rachel Wood and four other women, fellow musician and former collaborator Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails has rebuked Manson and affirmed his "dislike" for the performer in a new statement.
As Pitchfork reported, the Nine Inch Nails bandleader's denouncement comes after a story about Reznor from Manson's 1998 autobiography, The Long Hard Road Out of Hell, resurfaced following Wood's Feb. 1 accusation that Manson groomed and abused her during their relationship. In the book, Manson tells of an incident in the '90s where he and Reznor allegedly physically and sexually assaulted an intoxicated woman.
On Wednesday (Feb. 3), Reznor refuted the tale, his defense apparently issued in response to screenshots of passages from Manson's autobiography cropping up across social media.
"I have been vocal over the years about my dislike of Manson as a person and cut ties with him nearly 25 years ago," Reznor relayed. "As I said at the time, the passage from Manson's memoir is a complete fabrication. I was infuriated and offended back when it came out and remain so today."
The story about Reznor and Manson's supposed debauchery was meant to run in a 1995 Empyrean Magazine interview with Manson before being canceled due to content objections. Its inclusion in The Long Hard Road Out of Hell underscored Manson's early rapport with Reznor — the Nine Inch Nails mastermind helped produce the first two Marilyn Manson albums, each released under Reznor's Nothing Records imprint.
In 2017, as Consequence of Sound noted at the time, Manson reportedly claimed he and Reznor had made amends, maintaining the NIN frontman emailed him saying "something along the lines of, 'Even if it pisses me off that music's not dangerous anymore, it reminds me of how great you were and I was and that era.'"
In 2018, Wood testified before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security that she'd experienced "toxic mental, physical and sexual abuse which started slow but escalated over time." Her testimony, in support of the Sexual Assault Survivors Bill of Rights, did not name her purported abuser. But that changed earlier this week.
"The name of my abuser is Brian Warner," Wood claimed via Instagram on Monday, "also known to the world as Marilyn Manson. 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."
Manson responded shortly after after by saying that his life and art have "long been magnets for controversy, but these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality. My intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners. Regardless of how — and why — others are now choosing to misrepresent the past, that is the truth."
Following the allegations, Manson was dropped by his label and talent agency, lost his planned TV roles and had a state senator call for an investigation into his activities. Limp Bizkit's Wes Borland and another of Manson's former loves, Rose McGowan, shared their support for the alleged victims.