Marilyn Manson breaks silence on Lana Del Rey rape clip: 'I wouldn't make a video of that nature'
Shocking footage seemingly from a Manson music video leaked last month
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Your support makes all the difference.Marilyn Manson has broken his silence on the leaked Lana Del Rey rape footage that seemingly came from one of his music videos.
The heavy metal singer does not deny involvement with the controversial clip but insists that it was “put in context as if it were a Manson video” when that was “in no way the intention”.
“Summertime” star Del Rey is seen being pushed forcibly onto a bed by a man and sexually assaulted in a staged scene from the video, before being left crying in a Texas Chainsaw Massacre T-shirt.
Horror film director Eli Roth, a friend of Manson’s, said in a 2013 interview that the graphic footage was “so sick it’s been locked in a vault for over a year”, but it emerged online last month.
Initial reports suggested that Roth shot the disturbing scenes for a Manson music video but the latter’s spokesperson brushed it off as a “fan video splicing up old Manson video footage with someone else’s Lana Del Rey footage”.
Now, Manson has spoken out about the clip, explaining that he did want to make a video with Del Rey but the collaboration proved difficult to organise.
“Eli and I wanted to do a music video with her but she was being such a problem for me personally,” he told NME. “Although I still respect her, I’m friends with her, I just left. I was tired, I was not willing to make that part of the video.
“Eli and I originally had intentions of making a video with her but that is not the intention that is represented in that film clip because that is not what I filmed, that was not for my video.”
Manson believes that the video was put together with some of his other clips. [Del Rey’s rape scene] really strongly stands out of place, it doesn’t really make sense,” he said.
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“I would not make a video of that nature, nor would Eli, or maybe he would. I don’t think either of us were ever intending for that to be seen, it was more of a camera test. I’m a person that would beat somebody’s ass if they raped somebody I knew.
“It wasn’t a Marilyn Manson video. This was a grand mistake by the person who put it with my videos but I really had nothing to do with it.”
Production company Sturmgruppe uploaded the video to YouTube. It was deleted but has resurfaced and can be viewed here but be warned, the content may cause distress.
Del Rey has yet to comment on her involvement in the video.
Manson has been confirmed to headline Download Festival next June and will release his new album The Pale Emperor on 19 January.
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