Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black is set to face trial in the U.K. after allegedly assaulting a BBC host in a nightclub.
Black appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court in London via videolink on Thursday morning local time where he pled not guilty to a charge of assault by beating. Black was released on unconditional bail. His trial is set to take place on August 8.
The charge stems from an alleged altercation with an LGBTQ+ party planner and host of BBC3 show “The Big Proud Party Agency” Teddy Edwardes last summer.
According to reports, Black allegedly threw a drink over Edwardes, who has also appeared as a contestant on BBC gameshow “Unbreakable,” at Freedom nightclub in Soho in August. He was reported to have been accompanied by his husband, British Olympic diver Tom Daley, at the time.
Edwardes reportedly posted on Instagram after the alleged incident, writing: “I went out for a couple of quiet drinks with my friends last night, nothing crazy, and I bumped into Tom Daley and his husband in Soho, who… pretty much unprovoked he threw an entire drink over me in Freedom. I didn’t have a drink to throw back so I did choose violence, it wasn’t that violent, he got a little tap on the back of the head.”
The following month, Black also posted on social media. “So I vanished for a while…,” he wrote on Instagram last September. “A month ago I sustained a serious head injury that put me out of commission. Showing little improvement, my doctors ordered me to shut off my brain in hopes of it healing. This has been a challenging, frightening time for a creative type who depends on what’s in his skull to work, care and love. And now I understand the road back will be long. But this week my sweet, over the top husband took us to the Greek Islands to make me shut off. I can already feel this trip is a step in the right direction, and I finally feel safe sharing a bit again. Thank you for all of your love and patience. More to come. Promise.”
The screenwriter and producer won an Oscar for best original screenplay for “Milk” in 2008. He also created FX’s Andrew Garfield-starrer “Under the Banner of Heaven” and wrote the 2011 film “J. Edgar,” which starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Armie Hammer.
“Mr. Black was surprised and saddened to learn that after the other person involved in this unfortunate incident took responsibility and expressed remorse for a punch to the back of Mr. Black’s head – which left him with a life altering concussion – a decision was made to now examine the matter of a spilled drink in a court of law,” a spokesperson for Black told PvNew. “Of course Mr. Black will respect the process, and in the meantime will continue to focus on being a loving father and husband.”
