Marilyn Manson walks free of abuse charges, but Evan Rachel Wood's response speaks volumes.

Content warning: This article contains graphic details of violence and sexual assault.

"The name of my abuser is Brian Warner, also known to the world as Marilyn Manson."

These are the words Evan Rachel Wood wrote on Instagram in 2021, prompting other women to come forward with similar claims against the singer.

Four years later, following a lengthy investigation, authorities have revealed that Manson won't face criminal charges.

"We have determined that allegations of domestic violence fall outside of the statute of limitations," said County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman. "We cannot prove charges of sexual assault beyond a reasonable doubt."

Wood, 37, addressed the decision in a lengthy statement, saying she remained "proud of all the survivors".

"My lawyer and I were advised by the Deputy District Attorneys and the Sheriff deputies who investigated the case that there was compelling evidence to support our claims, but that the statute of limitations prevents many of those crimes from being prosecuted," Wood wrote on Instagram.

"We always knew that the statute of limitations would be a barrier, which is why we created the Phoenix Act so that other victims wouldn't have to experience this outcome."

The Phoenix Act was created by Wood, domestic violence survivors, and legislators in 2019. It extended the statute of limitations for domestic violence felony crimes from three years to five years.

"Unfortunately, the Phoenix Act cannot help in cases which occurred before it was passed, but I hope this shines a light on why it's so important to advocate for better laws," Wood continued.

"Evidence of violent crimes should not have an expiration date. I am grateful for the work law enforcement has done, and I am endlessly proud of all the survivors who risked everything to protect others by speaking the truth," she concluded.

Manson's attorney, Howard King, also released a statement following the decision, maintaining the singer's innocence.

"We are very pleased that, after a thorough and incredibly lengthy review of all of the actual evidence, the District Attorney has concluded what we knew and expressed from the start — Brian Warner is innocent," said King.

Watch: Evan Rachel Wood talks about her fight for domestic abuse victims. Post continues below.

Wood was 18 years old when she first met Manson, then 36, and dated him for three years until 2010. She accused him of abuse 11 years later, releasing a statement on Instagram.

"He started grooming me when I was a teenager and horrifically abused me for years," she wrote.

"I was brainwashed and manipulated into submission. I am done living in fear of retaliation, slander or blackmail. I am here to expose this dangerous man and call out the many industries that have enabled him before he ruins any more lives.

"I stand with the many victims who will no longer be silent."

Wood had spoken publicly about being a survivor of rape and domestic abuse, although she had never named Manson until 2021.

In 2016 she spoke about a suicide attempt at the age of 22, after spending her early 20s being subjected to "physical, psychological, sexual" abuse.

"[It] was, weirdly, the best-worst thing that ever happened to me. Cause it did not work. I am still standing. I am alive. I am happy. I am strong. But I am still not okay," she told Rolling Stone.

In 2011, Wood discovered she was pregnant with the baby of Manson.

"From the beginning of our relationship, he always had an issue with whatever birth control I was using — and I went through, like, every type to see which one he liked, and he didn’t like any of them, so essentially he didn’t want me using birth control," Wood said in part two of the HBO docuseries Phoenix Rising.

In the docuseries, Wood said Manson refused to wear a condom during their time together. After deciding to terminate the pregnancy, Wood said Manson demanded she cook him dinner straight after she came home from the abortion.

"He flew out for the abortion. The second it was over it was like, 'Make me dinner.' And I remember being like, 'I'm supposed to be resting, my body has gone through this trauma… there's aftermath here.' And he didn't care."

Evan Rachel Wood is an advocate for survivors. Image: Getty.

Phoenix Rising premiered at the 2022 Sundance film festival and immediately made headlines.

In the first instalment of the docuseries, Wood alleged Manson had raped her on the set of the music video of 'Heart-Shaped Glasses'. It was a song she inspired, and she appeared in the music video with Manson, making out with him as fake blood rained down on them.

During the documentary, Wood said that during a previously discussed "simulated sex scene", Manson "started penetrating me for real" once the cameras were rolling. Wood said she was fed absinthe on the set and was barely conscious to object to Manson's alleged actions.

"I had never agreed to that. It was complete chaos, and I did not feel safe. No one was looking after me. [The crew] was very uncomfortable and nobody knew what to do."

She continued: "I was coerced into a commercial sex act under false pretences. That's when the first crime was committed against me and I was essentially raped on camera. But I was scared to do anything that would upset Brian in any way. The video was just the beginning of the violence that would keep escalating over the course of the relationship."

In the wake of the attacks, Wood was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

"My experience with domestic violence was this: toxic mental, physical and sexual abuse which started slow but escalated over time, including threats against my life, severe gaslighting and brainwashing, waking up to the man that claimed to love me raping what he believed to be my unconscious body," she said.

Wood went on to say Manson "made threats against my life, sometimes with deadly weapons", alleging that he also tortured and starved her, monitored her phone usage and threatened her with blackmail.

In 2022, Manson filed a defamation lawsuit against Wood, calling her claims "horrible distortions of reality". He dropped the lawsuit in November 2024, and agreed to pay her around $327,000 in attorneys' fees, per Deadline.

Manson dropped his defamation case against Wood in 2024. Image: Getty.

Wood also shared the testimonies of four more women who accused Manson of horrifying physical and emotional abuse, including torture.

One woman, Ashley Walters, a former personal assistant of Manson, accused the singer of "psychological abuse".

"He was very skilled at gaslighting his inner circle," she alleged on Instagram.

"I'd witness him inflict his psychological abuse on everyone he employed, everyone he dated. He would dictate the perimeters of our reality. Horrifying, deranged behaviour and insane scenarios became normalised. He was extremely interested in mind control, torture tactics and spy devices to gather information for blackmailing and manipulation."

Another woman, model Sarah McNeilly, said that she suffered from PTSD following her relationship with the musician.

"I was emotionally abused, terrorised and scarred," she shared. "I was locked in rooms when I was 'bad', sometimes forced to listen to him entertaining other women. [I was] kept away from certain friends or if I didn’t, he would threaten to come after them. I was told stories of others who tried to tell their story and their pets ended up dead," she claimed.

Gabriella, better known as the artist SourGirrrl, also accused Manson of rape.

"He would tie me up for the first of many times and rape me. I sobbed on the floor in the hotel and when I looked at him, he was smiling," she alleged in a statement.

"He told me I wasn't allowed to wear pants. He would throw objects at me like glass. He could cut me during sex. He called me crazy. He called me autistic. He would make fun of my race. He destroyed my belongings."

In light of the allegations, singer Phoebe Bridgers shared her own experience with Manson on Twitter, adding that she had visited Manson's home with some friends when she was a teenager.

"I was a big fan. He referred to a room in his house as the 'rape room'. I thought it was just his horrible frat boy sense of humour. I stopped being a fan," she wrote.

"I stand with everyone who came forward," she continued.

Afterwards, Bridgers alleged that Manson's associates knew about the alleged abuse.

"The label knew, management knew, the band knew. Distancing themselves now, pretending to be shocked and horrified is f**king pathetic," she alleged.

Outside of Wood's claims, Game of Thrones actress Esmé Bianco also accused Manson of abuse. She alleged that the singer locked her in a bedroom, tied her up, whipped her and electrocuted her. They settled the case outside of court in 2023.

After it was revealed Manson wouldn't be facing charges, Bianco told the Associated Press that she was "not surprised".

"Whilst I am deeply disappointed by the decision of the District Attorney to not bring charges in the case against Brian Warner, I am sadly not surprised," her statement read.

"Once again, our justice system has failed survivors. Not the individual prosecutors and detectives who worked for years on this case, but the system that made them do so with one hand tied behind their collective backs."

Among the public, however, the allegations against Manson didn't exactly come as a surprise. In fact, Manson's alleged behaviour had been hiding in plain sight for years.

In December 2001, Manson was faced with an assault and sexual misconduct charge.

In April 2002, he was also hit with a wrongful death lawsuit, the mother of the deceased alleging Manson gave her late daughter drugs and encouraged her to "drive while inebriated".

In June 2009, while promoting his music, Manson said in an interview with Spin, that one of his songs was about "fantasies" he had "every day about smashing her skull in with a sledgehammer". He was referencing Evan Rachel Wood.

Wood has since become an incredibly vocal advocate for domestic violence survivors.

In 2018, Wood appeared before the US House Judiciary Committee amid a campaign for the 2016 Survivors' Bill of Rights Act to be enacted across the US. In 2019 she also testified to the California Senate Public Safety Committee in support of a bill expanding the rights of victims of domestic violence.

If you or anyone you know needs expert help, please contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) — the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service. If you are in immediate danger, call 000.

This article was originally published on January 25, 2022 and has since been updated with new information.

Feature Image: Getty