In a twist of events, George Santos, a former member of the House of Representatives, is considering legal action against late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel and ABC, alleging misuse of his Cameo clips, according to information obtained by The Post.
Andrew Mancilla, Santos' attorney, dispatched a "cease and desist" letter to Kimmel, ABC, and Doug Deluca, the executive producer of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" following the airing of several of Santos' Cameo clips on the show.
In the letter dated December 12, Mancilla wrote, "We are writing to congratulate you your 'dream' of being sued by Mr. Santos may indeed come true." He continued, "While your comedic efforts are much appreciated, you should have obtained Mr. Santos consent, as he is not camera shy, nor is he blind to the comedic irony of suing you for fraud."
This development is part of an ongoing dispute between Kimmel and Santos, which came to light last week when Kimmel alleged that the disgraced former New York congressman had demanded $20,000 for the use of his videos on the late-night show.
"[George Santos] has claimed hes made more money in seven days than he did in Congress for a year, and part of that money came from me," Kimmel informed his audience during the episode aired last Monday.
Kimmel admitted to having anonymously submitted Cameo requests to Santos, saying, "I sent him a bunch of crazy video requests because I wanted to see what he would read and what he wouldnt read." He added, "I showed some of them on the air on Thursday, and now hes demanding $20,000 from me to be paid a commercial rate."
In a segment titled "Will Santos Say It?", Kimmel alleged that the expelled lawmaker had hiked the prices of his videos to $500 each. "He should be thanking me for buying these videos," Kimmel jested.
Santos, who was expelled from the House of Representatives on December 1, just over a year after his election, is no stranger to controversy. He has been accused of misrepresenting nearly his entire background during his congressional campaign and of lying about his campaign's finances and defrauding donors, allegations he denies. Since his expulsion, Santos has set up an account on Cameo, a platform where fans can pay for personalized videos from celebrities.
In the cease and desist letter, Mancilla warned Kimmel and ABC that his client might have the final say in court over Kimmel's "prank." He stated, "Such 'pranks' are frequently known by a different name in the legal community: fraud."
Mancilla accused Kimmel of being a "sneaky little trickster" who may have garnered "some hearty laughs" and boosted ratings, but alleged his actions "constitute fraudulent inducement, breach of contract and unjust enrichment as well as violations of New York States Civil Rights Law."
He further alleged, "You also breached Cameos Terms of Service, which we understand they already contacted you about." He concluded the letter by urging Kimmel to take the matter seriously, saying, "We trust you will take this letter as seriously as Mr. Santos takes his Cameo commitments. Lets resolve this. Call us."
Doug Deluca, Kimmels producer, has yet to comment on the December 12 cease and desist letter.
Login