The Game has come out the loser in his legal maneuver against Viacom.
The rapper, who filed a $20 million lawsuit against Viacom last year over a contestant on his VH1 dating series “She’s Got Game,” was shot down Tuesday by a judge who granted Viacom’s motion to strike the complaint.
In the suit, the rapper — real name: Jayceon Terrell Taylor — said that Priscilla Rainey was allowed on the show despite a doctor cautioning about her volatile past.
The suit said that Rainey initially passed a psychological examination, but afterward the doctor who performed the examination “was presented with various court documents, including several arrest reports involving Rainey” that revealed “a long and violent criminal history, including multiple felony arrests for aggravated battery.”
Rainey filed a lawsuit against The Game, alleging that he sexually assaulted her, and was awarded $7.1 million in damages.
In an order dated Tuesday, federal court judge Dolly M. Gee sided with Viacom in the suit, which alleged negligence, negligent misrepresentation and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
In the order, Gee found that Viacom was exercising its right to free speech in casting Rainey.
“Viacom is correct. Courts have held that the ‘creation of a television show,’ including the ‘writing, casting, and broadcasting’ of a television show, is an exercise of free speech,” the ruling reads.
Gee also found that the rapper failed to show a likelihood of success on the merits of his claims.
In a statement after the lawsuit was filed, Viacom accused the rapper of attempting to “shift the burden of his damages” from Rainey’s lawsuit.
“In November 2016, a jury ordered Mr. Taylor to pay more than $7 million as a result of his actions against a former contestant of an unscripted television series produced by a third party,” Viacom told TheWrap. “He is now seeking to shift the burden of his damages to Viacom through a misdirected legal action that is totally without merit. We will work with the production partner on this series to vigorously defend against this claim.”
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.