Trent Reznor calls Marilyn Manson’s claim they sexually assaulted woman together ‘a complete fabrication’

Manson made lurid claims of sexual assault in his 1998 memoir, which has resurfaced this week

Trent Reznor has shut down Marilyn Manson’s claim that the pair sexually assaulted a woman together, calling the story “a complete fabrication”.

The Nine Inch Nails frontman and Oscar-winning film composer trended on Twitter this week after a passage from Manson’s 1998 autobiography The Long Hard Road Out of Hell resurfaced.

In it, Manson claims that he and Reznor sexually assaulted an intoxicated woman as part of a “trick”.

Reznor has now said that the incident Manson described was “a complete fabrication”.

“I have been vocal over the years about my dislike of Manson as a person and cut ties with him nearly 25 years ago,” Reznor said in a statement to Pitchfork. “As I said at the time, the passage from Manson’s memoir is a complete fabrication. I was infuriated and offended back when it came out and remain so today.”

Reznor has repeatedly condemned Manson in the last decade, after the pair fell out. Reznor was at one point considered a mentor figure in Manson’s life, having produced his debut album and pushed him to tour as a support act for Nine Inch Nails.

Read more: The Marilyn Manson accusations are disturbing – but they are a grimly familiar story for the music industry

In 2009, Reznor called Manson “a malicious guy” in an interview with Mojo Magazine. “He will step on anybody’s face to succeed and cross any line of decency,” Reznor said. “Seeing him now, drugs and alcohol now rule his life and he’s become a dopey clown.”

On Monday (1 February), actor Evan Rachel Wood accused Manson of grooming and abusing her “for years” while they were in a relationship. Several other women also came forward with allegations against Manson.

Manson has denied the claims, calling them “horrible distortions of reality”.

Read more: Evan Rachel Wood: A timeline of her comments on abuse and assault after her Marilyn Manson allegations

He has since been dropped by his record label and talent agency, while his role on the US TV series American Gods has also been axed.

Trent Reznor and Marilyn Manson (Dimitrios Kambouris/Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Today (4 February), Manson’s ex-wife Dita Von Teese released a statement expressing that while she did not experience abuse in their marriage, “abuse of any kind has no place in any relationship”.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, you can call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge, on 0808 2000 247, or visit their website here.