Love is Blind contestant sues for sexual assault during filming of show

Love is Blind season 5 contestant Tran Dang is suing the Netflix show’s production team, Kinetic Content and Delirium TV, for sexual assault, false imprisonment and negligence.

Dang claims she was sexually assaulted by her former fiancé Thomas Smith during the filming of the show’s latest season in Mexico on or around 3 May 3 2022. The pair got engaged during the show but have not been featured in the episodes.

In the lawsuit, Dang alleges Smith "incessantly groped" her, "exposed himself in the nude," and forcibly and repeatedly made sexual contact" without her consent.

TODAY.com reports that Kip Patterson, Smith’s attorney, said in an email that Smith denied the allegations and the firm does not comment on ongoing litigation.

The filing made by Dang also says, "due to Delirium TV and Kinetic Content’s 24-hour surveillance of Plaintiff and Defendant Smith, most if not all of these traumatic acts were filmed by the production crew and within their knowledge."

Kinetic Content and Delirium TV denied the claims in a joint statement responding to the lawsuit, calling it “meritless”, according to Variety.

“We support and stand with victims of sexual assault, but Ms Dang’s claims against the producers are meritless. We document the independent choices of adults who volunteer to participate in a social experiment. Their journey is not scripted, nor is it filmed around the clock. We have no knowledge or control over what occurs in private living spaces when not filming, and participants may choose to end their journey at any time,” the companies said.

“We take any and all concerns of our participants seriously and prioritize their well-being. Obviously, we cannot address undisclosed concerns, and throughout the time that Ms Dang was involved in the production of Love is Blind, she never informed the producers of any alleged wrongdoing of any kind. Nor did she choose to end her participation in the experiment.

“Instead, Ms Dang continued in the experiment for weeks after the time her lawyers now claim an incident occurred. We deny and will vigorously defend the allegations against us.”

TODAY.com reports that Dang’s attorney, Benjamin W Allen, accused the production companies of delaying the ongoing case in a statement.

“The producers are throwing money at the problem by spending an inordinate amount of money on losing legal positions that do nothing but delay the parties from having their day in court. They lost on three distinct legal issues before the trial court and then filed three separate appeals to multiply the proceedings we have to wade through before finally trying this case," Allen’s statement read, according to Today.

“We are confident that Ms Dang’s position will be vindicated once we get there and are committed to seeing it through all of the way. We have to hold the show producers accountable. We have an ethical duty to our client to do so, but also feel a moral obligation to the next generation of reality show participants," he continued.

Creator and CEO of Kinetic Content Chris Coelen also denied the allegations and insisted the production team was never informed she felt unsafe.

Coelen said if any contestants felt unsafe in any way, they “would immediately remove them from the experiment and talk to them, and try to get to the bottom of it”.

“Unfortunately, in this case, that kind of sentiment was never addressed to us in any way, nor was any alleged wrongdoing brought to our attention ever,” he added.

Coelen also denied allegations that contestants are being filmed 24 hours a day.

“They are living their lives. They have plenty of moments where they are not being documented,” he said.

“We don’t mount cameras in the bedrooms or bathrooms. We don’t have any of those. They know when we’re around. As a true believer in these real relationships, I want them to know what it’s like to be with their partner.”

In the lawsuit, Dang also claims she was not allowed to leave her hotel room “without express permission.” She alleges food was also provided by the production team but said on multiple days of filming," they would provide contestants with "several alcoholic beverages," while "providing limited amounts of food."

“This combination was designed to encourage the participants to engage in striking conversations and actions that would increase viewer ratings," her petition states.

However, Coelen told People that these claims were “not true”. He added: "It’s not true in any way ... we don’t push alcohol… everyone has consistent and regular access to food and water."