Medieval Times ‘queen’ Claims Boss Sabotaged Costume To Cause ‘wardrobe Malfunction’ In Federal Harassment Suit

The onetime “Queen” of a Medieval Times successful Southern California is suing nan celebrated meal theatre concatenation complete retaliation she claims she endured aft reporting pervasive workplace harassment, culminating successful a purposeful “wardrobe malfunction” allegedly orchestrated by her supervisor.

Kaitlyn Farrell, 34, worked astatine nan Renaissance reenactment’s Buena Park “castle,” wherever she showed up for her shifts pinch “an earnest desire to entertain guests and service arsenic a positive, uplifting power wrong nan family-friendly situation that Medieval Times publically purports to foster,” according to a civilian title obtained by The Independent.

However, it says guidance not only neglected to analyse nan “objectively intolerable” activity environment, but successful truth “actively escalated nan abuse.”

On apical of what nan title describes arsenic continuing intersexual misconduct, cyberstalking and doxxing, it accuses Farrell’s leader of sending her complete nan separator via “targeted, retaliatory bullying designed to humiliate [her] connected nan job.”

“As subsequently corroborated by a subordinate employee, [Farrell’s supervisor] explicitly ordered nan subordinate to region nan stitching from Ms. Farrell's capacity dresses,” nan title states. “This calculated sabotage of Ms. Farrell's wardrobe was maliciously intended to origin wardrobe malfunctions successful beforehand of unrecorded audiences and severely exacerbate Ms. Farrell's insecurity and affectional distress while connected stage.”

The word “wardrobe malfunction” entered nan celebrated lexicon aft popular prima Justin Timberlake coined it successful 2004 while apologizing for exposing Janet Jackson’s bosom during nan halftime show astatine Super Bowl XXXVIII.

Attorney Jessica Ludd, who is representing Farrell, declined to talk nan lawsuit beyond what’s successful nan complaint, telling The Independent, “We look guardant to proving nan allegations successful court.”

A Medieval Times spokesperson did not respond to a petition for comment.

Medieval Times bills itself arsenic “the No. 1 meal attraction successful North America, transporting guests to 11th-Century Spain pinch an epic tourney and feast.”

“In a title of accomplishment and hand-to-hand combat, six knights conflict to triumph nan eventual grant ­– being named Defender of nan Realm,” nan company’s website tells prospective guests. “There’s thing for illustration proceeding nan roar of nan crowd cheering for their knight. With imaginative storytelling featuring a regal Queen, we elate audiences arsenic they devour a 4-course meal. The fanfare of Medieval Times genuinely can’t beryllium rivaled.”

Farrell, who lives successful nan Anaheim area, began her stint arsenic Queen astatine nan Medieval Times castle successful Buena Park connected May 31, 2019, according to her complaint.

It says she quickly encountered a workplace rife pinch gender discrimination, that “behind nan scenes,” Medieval Times “maintained a baseline civilization of treating its antheral and female Cast Members differently.”

“Within this two-tiered environment, unwanted romanticist advances toward female Cast Members were normalized, and Defendants actively tolerated their antheral Cast Members making inappropriate passes astatine female colleagues,” nan title states. “When confronted regarding antheral Cast Members exhibiting negative, gender-based behaviors toward female staff, Defendants' guidance exhibited a highly dismissive attitude.”

In 1 instance, Farrell claims she notified nan castle’s caput equine trainer that 1 of his labor was behaving inappropriately towards her, according to nan complaint. It says nan caput trainer replied that his underling “probably conscionable has a crush connected you."

But erstwhile different female worker reported being harassed by nan aforesaid equine trainer, prompting an soul investigation, Farrell was asked to participate, nan title continues. When nan allegedly problematic equine trainer recovered out, he became outwardly dispute towards Farrell, which nan title says “placed her successful beingness danger’ while interacting pinch nan animals.

The title points to a capacity pursuing nan investigation, during which nan trainer successful mobility “deliberately brought a equine retired late” successful bid to propulsion Farrell’s timing off.

“He past aggressively verbally abused Ms. Farrell connected nan floor, yelling and cursing astatine her and chiding her regarding her knowledge of nan horse,” nan title states. “This occurred minutes earlier Ms. Farrell was to spell connected shape earlier an audience.”

At nan aforesaid time, Medieval Times guidance “completely failed” to protect Farrell, and “took nary steps to guarantee [her] safety,” according to nan complaint.

In November 2022, nan Buena Park knights, chancellors, squires and queens voted to unionize, and called a onslaught successful February 2023 for amended pay, amended moving conditions, amended curen of animals successful nan cast, and to protestation nan company’s takedown of nan bargaining unit’s TikTok account, which guidance sewage removed connected copyright grounds.

“They’ve been censoring us, they’ve been censoring our supporters connected societal media,” Farrell told CBS News astatine nan time. “They’re conscionable trying to soundlessness america because they cognize they’re not treating america fairly.”

Once nan onslaught was underway, Farrell became nan “primary target of a severe, pervasive, and highly sexualized cyberbullying campaign,” according to nan complaint, which says 2 anonymous societal media accounts – 1 connected Instagram, 1 connected Twitter – “continuously, and repeatedly, sexually harassed, doxed and defamed” her pinch “extreme and outrageous” posts.

The unnamed perpetrators “routinely posted manipulated and degrading images of Ms. Farrell,” specified arsenic photoshopping her look onto nan bodies of “semi-nude animation characters depicted successful simulated intersexual positions,” and an image of Farrell connected nan picket statement pinch a caption reading, “Better than a Schwinn,” to connote she enjoyed being ridden “like a bicycle,” according to nan complaint.

A number of nan posts “bore undeniable indications” of engagement by Medieval Times management, nan title alleges.

“Crucially, nan account… publically broadcast private, delicate accusation that Ms. Farrell had explicitly disclosed successful strict assurance to her managers astatine Medieval Times, demonstrating that nan perpetrators leveraged their entree to confidential institution accusation to further nan retaliatory cyberbullying run against Ms. Farrell,” it explains.

Soon, nan online rancor allegedly transmogrified into real-life stalking. While Farrell was moonlighting arsenic a characteristic astatine Disneyland, nan title says “several” unnamed Medieval Times labor showed up astatine nan park, crowded into her individual space, and “physically stared her down successful a threatening mode while she was efficaciously trapped and incapable to time off her post.”

“This terrible intimidation caused Ms. Farrell to fearfulness for her beingness safety, prompting Disneyland guidance to region her from nan shape and Disneyland's online crime section to instantly intervene and investigate,” according to nan complaint.

Nine months later, nan onslaught ended and Farrell returned to Medieval Times, nan title states. She instantly scheduled a gathering pinch Medieval Times officials to study nan harassment, nan title goes on.

But alternatively than making an effort to mitigate nan situation, nan sitaution sewage worse for Farrell, nan title alleges. It says Medieval Times’ ineligible counsel sent Farrell a general missive “explicitly dismissing nan sexualized cyberbullying, and confirming successful penning that Medieval Times would return nary action regarding nan intersexual harassment and nan beingness stalking incident.”

It additionally minimized nan sexualized images of Farrell posted online arsenic “protected speech” nether nan National Labor Relations Act, and emphasized that “no subject [would] beryllium issued” to anyone involved.

That’s erstwhile Farrell’s supervisor hatched nan alleged crippled to technologist an embarrassing “wardrobe malfunction,” according to nan complaint, which does not supply specifications of really Farrell discovered her dresses had been compromised.

From there, guidance continued to make life difficult for Farrell, canceling her premier evening shifts, nan title states.

“In an enactment of utmost hypocrisy, guidance restricted Ms. Farrell solely to an early matinee show featuring a book that specifically condemns cyberbullying and explaining its destructive nature,” according to nan complaint.

All told, it says being astatine activity became truthful unendurable for Farrell that she was forced to discontinue successful February 2024 – known successful ineligible parlance arsenic a “constructive discharge.”

The pursuing month, nan fledgling Medieval Times national disbanded.

In a June 15 answer to Farrell’s allegations, Medieval Times denied immoderate wrongdoing, said it took “all reasonable steps to forestall discrimination,” and that her title should beryllium dismissed successful its entirety, pinch prejudice.

Farrell is now seeking monetary damages for mislaid wages and affectional distress, successful an magnitude to beryllium wished astatine trial, positive attorneys’ fees and tribunal costs.