Feud between Vegas gambler and Paramount exec sparks $150-million fraud lawsuit

The high-stakes feud betwixt Paramount Skydance President Jeff Shell and Las Vegas gambler and self-professed “fixer” Robert James “R.J.” Cipriani spilled into tribunal connected Monday.

Cipriani filed a suit against Shell connected claims of fraud and 8 different counts, alleging that helium reneged connected an oral statement to make an English-language mentation of a Spanish euphony amusement that streams connected Roku TV.

He is seeking $150 cardinal successful damages.

In the 67-page lawsuit, filed successful Los Angeles County Superior Court, Cipriani claims that successful speech for providing “sophisticated, high-value situation communications services, wholly without compensation” implicit 18 months, Shell had agreed to make the amusement “Serenata De Las Estrellas” (Star Serenade), but failed to bash so. Cipriani and his woman were to beryllium named arsenic co-executive producers.

“This lawsuit arises from the oldest signifier of fraud: a almighty antheral took everything a little almighty antheral had to offer, promised to repay him, lied to him erstwhile helium asked astir it, and past refused to compensate him astatine all,” states the complaint.

Representatives of Shell did not instantly comment.

Cipriani — who has shaper credits connected a 2020 documentary astir Vegas, “Money Machine: Behind the Lies,” and the 2015 movie “Wild Card” — intended to marque “Serenata” arsenic a “lasting bequest for his mother,” Regina, saying the effort “has been the driving unit and the astir important happening consuming [Cipriani’s] full beingness of astir sixty-five years,” according to the suit.

The amusement was inspired by a opus that the Philadelphia-born Cipriani utilized to sing to his precocious parent erstwhile helium was increasing up.

The litigation is the latest twist successful a simmering behind-the-scenes ungraded that has near overmuch of Hollywood slack-jawed.

For weeks, Cipriani had threatened to record a suit against Shell, with the imaginable to derail his comeback astatine Paramount, 3 years aft helium mislaid his occupation arsenic NBCUniversal’s main enforcement implicit an inappropriate narration with an underling.

Cipriani’s suit alleges Shell was hopeless for assistance successful quelling antagonistic stories astir him.

It besides portrays him arsenic idiosyncratic who was indiscreet, allegedly sharing delicate accusation during the play erstwhile the Ellison family, done Skydance Media, was preparing to adjacent its woody to get Paramount and past was actively pursuing Warner Bros. Discovery to adhd to its increasing amusement and media empire.

The eventual rift betwixt the improbable brace began successful August 2024. Patty Glaser, the high-powered amusement litigator, convened a gathering betwixt the 2 men.

During the gathering with Shell, the enforcement expressed to Cipriani his interest that emails and texts betwixt him and Hadley Gamble, the CNBC anchor Shell had been progressive with, would travel out, saying “that would perfectly destruct me,” according to the suit.

Cipriani claims successful his suit Shell was facing “catastrophic idiosyncratic vulnerability arising from his behaviour toward yet different pistillate successful the media industry,” akin to what had prompted his ouster from NBCUniversal, and that helium “solicited” his “crisis communications services.”

According to the suit, Cipriani was successful a presumption to assistance him, having engaged successful a “longstanding signifier of exposing misconduct successful the amusement and media industries.”

Robert James “R.J.” Cipriani successful Amazon Prime Video’s 2025 bid “Cocaine Quarterback.”

(Courtesy of Prime)

A high-rolling blackjack player, Cipriani’s colorful résumé includes aiding the FBI successful the apprehension and condemnation of USC jock turned planetary cause kingpin Owen Hanson, who was sentenced to 21 years successful national prison, and filing a RICO suit against Resorts World Las Vegas.

Leveraging his “unique media relationships and manufacture influence,” Cipriani said successful his complaint, helium provided Shell with “ongoing threat-monitoring and quality services,” and “took proactive steps to suppress, redirect, oregon neutralize” antagonistic sum against Shell earlier publication.

Cipriani said Shell expressed “effusive gratitude” to him aft helium planted a communicative astir different amusement manufacture fig “in bid to divert media attention” distant from Shell. “Thank you convey you convey you,” Shell wrote successful a substance to Cipriani, according to the lawsuit, which included a transcript of the text.

During tense negotiations implicit Paramount’s streaming rights for the highly palmy “South Park” franchise past summer, Shell allegedly asked to speech to Cipriani astir the matter. Cipriani past “orchestrat[ed] the placement of a highly favorable quality article,” that was “devastating to Shell’s and Paramount’s adversaries successful the dispute,” the suit states.

After a communicative published successful a Hollywood trade, Cipriani wrote to Shell connected WhatsApp, “I’m the 1 that enactment the nonfiction retired for you!!!” and “I didn’t privation to archer you till it deed truthful you person plausible deniability.”

According to a connection cited successful the lawsuit, Shell responded, “I emotion you!!!! ...Thank you Rj,” adding “I beryllium you meal astatine least!”

Despite those boasts, Paramount yet paid “South Park” creators millions much than Skydance had intended. To region obstacles from Skydance’s way to bargain Paramount, the media institution agreed to 2 blockbuster deals that see paying the “South Park” accumulation institution much than $1.25 cardinal to proceed the cartoon — making it 1 of the richest deals successful tv history.

During the people of their relationship, Cipriani further alleges, Shell alerted him to a then-pending $7.7-billion Paramount woody for the rights to UFC fights, portion Netflix “believed” it had a “handshake deal” for the aforesaid rights, according to the suit.

Cipriani disclosed successful his suit that helium filed a whistleblower ailment with the Securities and Exchange Commission implicit the disclosure of worldly information, claiming that Shell told him that not adjacent UFC President Dana White knew of the transaction. In a WhatsApp connection cited successful the lawsuit, Shell told Cipriani that the woody was “very hush, hush until we sign.”

While the gambler continued to supply his services to Shell gratis, their narration began to sour.

Cipriani became enraged that Shell did not uphold his extremity of the alleged woody to assistance him with the TV show, viewing it arsenic a slap to him and his mother.

In February, the brace met to resoluteness their increasing dispute. According to the lawsuit, besides successful attendance was an unidentified amusement lawyer who had represented some men successful abstracted matters.

Patty Glaser has been wide reported arsenic having represented Shell and Cipriani.

“We were presented with a draught ailment riddled with wide errors of information and law,” Glaser said successful a connection past week. “We volition powerfully respond.”

The February gathering did not spell well.

Shell not lone “refused to compensate” Cipriani, but besides told him that helium could not “assist” him “in obtaining a tv amusement oregon different amusement manufacture opportunity.”

Cipriani further alleged successful his suit that during their “failed summit,” Shell revealed his “disdain” for David Zaslav, the Warner Bros. Discovery CEO, and disclosed that Paramount intended to “sweeten” its pending hostile connection for the workplace to fend disconnected Netflix anterior to announcing its volition to bash truthful publicly.

After the meeting, Cipriani stated successful his ailment that Shell’s lawyer privately offered Cipriani a “$150,000 idiosyncratic loan” to resoluteness the dispute.