If you don’t know Randall Emmett for his empire of “geezer teaser†movies that (briefly) feature older stars like Bruce Willis and Al Pacino, you might recognize the Hollywood producer as the ex-fiancé of Lala Kent from Vanderpump Rules. But per a June 30 report from the Los Angeles Times, Emmett is also known for something else: the alleged mistreatment of multiple women, assistants, and business partners. The Times’ lengthy report includes several allegations of abuse and fraud against Emmett, who denied all claims through a spokeswoman.
According to the Times, several women have accused Emmett of inappropriate behavior that took place online or in person. One aspiring actress alleged that he said she would “have to perform sexual favors†in order to get acting work with him. Over a period of three years, the producer allegedly received massages and oral sex from her, digitally penetrated her, and masturbated while she stood nude in his office. Emmett reportedly later signed a settlement agreement to pay her about $200,000 (though he has denied doing so).
Lala Kent alleges that Emmett “tackled†her and knocked her to the ground when she tried to grab his phone and prove that he was cheating on her. “That was when I knew, for sure, that there was a lot he was hiding,†Kent said in the piece. Additionally, he allegedly paid women to sign nondisclosure agreements that kept his sexual relationships secret. One woman who initially told the Times that she signed two of these agreements later stated via Emmett’s lawyer that she had lied to “paint the worst possible picture of Randall.†Before her retraction, she had alleged to the Times that Emmett had mistreated a friend of hers, Samantha Rakell. Emmett’s team also provided a sworn statement in which Rakell said she previously lied to Times reporter Amy Kaufman to make Emmett “look abusive†— yet according to the Times, no one from the outlet had ever interviewed her.
The Times also spoke with ten of his former assistants, who accuse him of a range of allegations including asking them to transport drugs, deliver payments to women, and put thousands of dollars in charges on their personal credit cards. “Randall was different from being just a mean boss,†former assistant Martin G’Blae said. “He made people do dangerous things — and illegal things. You had to be his punching bag — and his mule.†G’Blae, a Black man, alleged that he had been tasked with transporting a safe that he didn’t initially know contained a “big bag of cocaine.†A source close to Emmett said assistants were reimbursed for their credit-card charges, but G’Blae, who left in September 2020, alleges that he has yet to be fully paid back for his expenses as Emmett’s assistant.
Meanwhile, Emmett and his company are reportedly facing almost 12 lawsuits that total to more than $25 million outstanding loans and disputed payments. The Times obtained copies of lucrative contracts that offer the stars of Emmett’s movies — including Willis, Pacino, Robert De Niro, and more — vacations and lavish accommodations, despite allegations behind the scenes that the company was struggling to pay crew and other staff.
Last year, the Writers Guild of America West won $541,464 against Emmett’s company after filing a claim for writers who alleged that they were shortchanged for work on one of his projects. “His normal mode of business is being sketchy,†said Teresa Huang, one of the writers involved. “He just spins all these plates in the air and doesn’t care how they crash.†Per the Times, Emmett responded to Huang’s statement by chalking the allegations up to a “smear campaign†orchestrated by Kent as part of the custody dispute over their child.