Marilyn Manson told us he was a predator 20 years ago. Why weren’t we listening?
The lack of accountability in the music industry has been endangering women for decades, and Manson’s reckoning is long overdue.
On February 1, 2021 — two years after her testimony before Congress — Evan Rachel Wood publicly named Marilyn Manson as her abuser. While many fans had already made this connection, her public declaration spread across the internet like wildfire, and the media finally has something to say.
A quick Google search of Manson now yields pages upon pages of outrage, but my question is: where was this outrage before?
Manson's history of mistreating women isn't anything new.
In fact, he's been proudly boasting about it for 23 years.
1998
With the help of author and journalist Neil Strauss, Marilyn Manson published an autobiography titled The Long Hard Road Out of Hell. Over the course of 269 pages, Manson detailed events ranging from violent harassment to sexual assault with little regret. Weaved in between these alarming incidents are various statements and sets of “rules” encouraging dehumanization of and violence towards women. Despite its dangerous, predatory content, Manson received more criticism for the Columbine massacre than he did his own autobiography.
Jim Derogatis of Chicago Reader — now famous for his reporting on R. Kelly’s history of sexual violence — expressed some distaste for the book’s content and integrity, specifically Neil Strauss’ ongoing conflict of interest. He was one of very few to view the memoir with a critical eye.
Music critics like Marc Savlov of Austin Chronicle, called it “a terrific rock & roll saga in the epic vein”. The book received similarly positive reviews from The Washington Post, Rolling Stone, and LA Weekly.
Seven months later, Mechanical Animals debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, Manson set off on an international tour, and the less palatable elements of his memoir were swept aside by critics choosing to focus his hyper-sexual stage show, counter culture persona, and contentious lyrics.
The Long Hard Road Out of Hell became a New York Times Best Seller.
2009
In his now-famous 2009 Spin interview, Manson and William Goodman discussed his recent split with Evan Rachel Wood. During the interview, Manson said he fantasized about “smashing her skull in with a sledgehammer” every day. He went on to admit that he called Wood over 150 times, self-mutilating as he did, to “show her the pain she put (him) through” on Christmas Day 2008.
Despite his very public admission of abuse, major magazines and music critics were once again reticent to criticize the shock rock musician. His comments were redistributed by an unenthused and unconcerned media, with only a few celebrity publications asking “Anybody got a straight jacket?”.
Manson continued the public display of his violent fantasies when he released the music video Running to the Edge of the World just a few months later. The poorly received video features Manson beating a woman — with an obvious resemblance to Wood — bloody and unconscious, leaving her presumably dead in a bathtub.
Interscope Records never commented on the Spin interview or concerning video and dropped Marilyn Manson from their label after The High End of Low sold poorly in the United States.
2018 – 2019
In February 2018, eight years after the end of her relationship with Marilyn Manson, Evan Rachel Wood detailed her history with domestic violence and sexual assault to a Congress in an attempt to expand the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights. Wood spoke about the experience many survivors have had in the wake of #MeToo and #TimesUp: a complex blend of validation and pain.
Her abuser, who she chose not to name, used several tactics to control her including psychological torture, gaslighting, and slow escalation to increase his control over her. She referenced that experience when discussing the common “freeze response” to trauma and abuse, arguing for a reevaluation of the legal definition of consent.
“It started slow but escalated over time, including threats against my life, severe gaslighting and brainwashing, [and] waking up to the man that claimed to love me raping what he believed to be my unconscious body. And the worst part: Sick rituals of binding me up by my hands and feet to be mentally and physically tortured until my abuser felt I had proven my love for them.”
The following year, the Phoenix Act — a law spearheaded by Evan Rachel Wood to extend the statute of limitations for domestic violence cases — was signed into law. Her inspiration, she says, was her own trauma. By the time she felt ready to come forward and press charges, after learning her abuser had victimized more women, she was informed it was too late and the statute of limitations had expired. With no other options, she decided to take on the task herself and work with other advocacy organizations to extend protections to victims.
“Bad things can happen to you, but you can rise out of the ashes. That is exactly why I named it the Phoenix Act. I do believe that you can come back from tragedy, sometimes even stronger than you were before.”
After the passing of the Phoenix Act, Wood continued her work as an advocate for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. The details of her testimony led many fans to speculate about the identity of her abuser, with the overwhelming consensus being Marilyn Manson.
The following year, The Long Hard Road Out of Hell was named #34 on Rolling Stone Australia’s “The 50 Greatest Rock Memoirs of All Time”.
2021
On February 1, 2021 Evan Rachel Wood publicly named Marilyn Manson, legally Brian Warner, as her abuser on her Instagram account.
The response to her initial allegation was swift. Several other women have come forward accusing Marilyn Manson of abuse or relaying incidents of abuse that they were witness to. Wood has received support from fans, advocates, industry partners, and elected officials.
This list of accusers is likely to grow in the coming days. As of the time of this writing, Manson’s accusers are:
- Evan Rachel Wood says Manson repeatedly raped, physically and mentally abused, and held her captive over the course of their relationship.
- Gabriella says Manson tied her up and raped her, took and distributed naked photographs of her without her consent, and forced her to consume drugs with him.
- Ashley Lindsay Morgan says Manson subjected her to physical and sexual violence, used anti-semitic slurs in her presence, and asked her to bring him Nazi memorabilia from her trips to Thailand. Morgan is Jewish.
- Sarah McNeilly says Manson threw her into a wall and threatened her with a baseball bat at one point during their nonromantic friendship.
- Love Bailey says Manson held a gun to her head in his recording studio in 2011.
- Chloe Black says Manson controlled her appearance, assaulted her to the degree of leaving bruises all over her body, and spent upwards of eight hours psychologically torturing her in a statement on her Instagram.
- Ashley Walters says Manson psychologically abused her, non-consensually offered her to others for sex, and committed other acts of abuse that resulted in her developing PTSD.
Amidst the tidal wave of allegations, Marilyn Manson has removed himself from the public eye and is keeping away from the press in his Hollywood home. On February second, he issued a brief blanket denial of the allegations against him that directly contradicts his memoir admissions.
In response to the public calls for justice, Senator Susan Rubio and others have called upon the acting Attorney General to investigate these allegations. It’s unclear when such an investigation would begin.
Marilyn Manson has been dropped by his manager of 25 years, Tony Ciulla, as well as his record label, Loma Vista, and his talent agency, CAA. His scheduled television appearances on American Gods and Creepshow have been cancelled, though his songs still appear on several curated playlists from Spotify.
Why didn’t we listen then, and why are we now?
Marilyn Manson has been held more accountable for his predation in 7 days than in the last 23 years. In the era of the #MeToo movement, it’s unsurprising to see the overwhelming support for Manson’s alleged victims, but the rapid media response leaves many wondering why this issue wasn’t addressed when we began seeing evidence of it back in 1998.
The unfortunate reality is that Manson’s fanbase originates from a generation desensitized by the antics of rockers like Ozzy Osbourne and Alice Cooper and shock jock radio hosts like Doug Tracht and Howard Stern. In 1998, you had to have bought the book or read the newspaper to have a glimpse of what Manson was admitting to, and then you had to believe it. Most of the allegations stemming from The Long Hard Road Out of Hell became urban legends. The world moved on, and Manson’s albums were handed down like the heirlooms of an emboldened generation.
In 2021, younger generations have the buying power and a devotion to social justice has embedded itself in their culture. With instant access to limitless information through social media and internet connection, awareness is expected and action is demanded. Manson’s music may have changed, but his image hasn’t, and those who inherited their parents’ taste for shock rock are quicker to act upon information, if only because it’s more accessible than it was to their predecessors.
Manson’s long overdue reckoning is reminiscent of the Surviving R. Kelly aftermath and the immediate ramifications it had on the singer’s career. With the possibility of a federal investigation on the horizon, those closest to Marilyn Manson — his label, manager, and bandmates— are going to find themselves answering some difficult questions about how his predation was able to continue without intervention. With the spotlight on his misdeeds, it’s unlikely his brand or career will ever recover.
The shambles that are left of the Manson legacy won’t stay standing much longer.
Time’s up.
