Disney Sued Over Alleged Sexual Assault of Child Actress on Set

Former child actress Raquel Lee Bolleau has filed a civil lawsuit against The Walt Disney Company, alleging the company failed to protect her from repeated sexual assault by an employee while she was 14 and filming the 2001 Disney Channel movie The Poof Point. According to the complaint, Bolleau claims she was given alcohol and sexually assaulted several times by the employee, identified only as John Doe, during production in Salt Lake City. She also alleges that he made sexual remarks about her body and sought physical contact with her while other members of the cast and crew were nearby.

Bolleau claims Disney personnel encouraged her to spend time with the employee and separated her from her guardian for much of the workday, despite being underage and vulnerable. As a result, she experienced changes in behavior and health, including becoming exhausted, physically ill, and increasingly unable to remember her lines. Bolleau's negligence claim focuses on Disney's own supervision of the production and its failure to take reasonable steps to prevent harm.

The lawsuit was filed about 25 years after the alleged assaults, and California law allows people who experienced childhood sexual assault before January 1, 2024, to bring civil claims within 22 years after turning 18 or five years after discovering an adult psychological injury. Bolleau is now 39 and seeking compensation for alleged emotional harm and economic losses.