English actress Esmé Bianco has joined the growing list of Marilyn Manson accusers.
In a recent interview with The Cut, the Game of Thrones actress detailed the alleged abuse she endured during her relationship with the embattled shock-rocker. Bianco said she was introduced to Manson in 2005 when he was engaged to Dita Von Teese. Bianco, who worked as burlesque performer at the time, said Manson wanted to cast her in a potential horror film based on Lewis Carroll’s Phantasmagoria. She said she was in disbelief over the opportunity.
“I thought, ‘My teen idol wants to work with me. Don’t eff this one up,’” she Bianco recalled.
The two reportedly remained in contact following Manson and Von Teese’s split in 2007. Bianco was eventually cast in Manson’s “I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies” music video, in which she would play an abused kidnap victim. Bianco, who was 26 at the time, said this was the first time Manson had physically abused her without her consent.
Bianco told The Cut she spent the three-day shoot entirely in lingerie and experienced sleep and food deprivation. She claims Manson gave her cocaine instead of meals, and became increasing violent throughout her the shoot. She said Manson tied her up with cables, lashed her with whips, and used an electric sex toy on her wounds. Though she said the incident left her terrified, she tried to convince herself that Manson was simply being theatrical.
The two eventually began a long-distance affair, with Manson visiting her in London and flying her out to California as she dealt with marital problems. She claims that Manson would bite her during sex without her consent, and would leave bruises on her body. She said she tried to convince herself that the abuse was normal, and Manson described his actions as kinky sex.
Bianco said she finally decided to get out of the relationship in 2011, after Manson allegedly chased her around the apartment with an ax. She would eventually sneak out of the home while Manson was asleep, and broke up with rocker over email.
“I had so little dignity left,” she said. “I think that something inside me was just like, Have some sort of respect for yourself.”
The Cut corroborated Bianco’s story with some of her friends who claimed to have seen the bruises and cuts Manson inflicted. Fraser Knight, who has been friends with Bianco for 20 years, said the actress had once called him seeking help as she hid inside Manson’s home.
Bianco said the alleged abuse also affected her performance during her time with Game of Thrones, as her character Ros was featured in some of the series’ most violent scenes.
“He’s not a misunderstood artist,” she told The Cut. “He deserves to be behind bars for the rest of his life.”
