Actress Uma Thurman sued French cosmetics manufacture Lancôme for a reported $15 million on Friday. The Kill Bill star has accused Lancome of using unauthorized images of her on Canadian advertising billboards and Asian websites after her contract with them had expired. The suit comes just days after Uma was slammed with a lawsuit by the company, who claim the actress tried to extort them for $1 million.
Thurman’s lawyer says he was surprised by the lawsuit, adding: “I thought we were negotiating in good faith. I guess the French decided to strike a pre-emptive blow….But I’m delighted that the case will go before a jury. They got an enormous benefit throughout the world after the contract was over, and $1 million doesn’t begin to do it.”
“The use of Ms. Thurman’s image after her contract expired, however minor, was neither deliberate nor intentional,” a spokeswomen for L’Oreal, which owns Lancome, said in a statement on Friday. “As this matter is currently in litigation, it is Lancôme’s policy not to comment on legal matters while they are in progress.”
Lancôme filed a lawsuit earlier this week in the State Supreme Court in Manhattan, contending it did not violate Uma’s contract and owes her no money.