Marciano Brunette and Demi Engemann reach settlement in defamation suit over reality TV claims

Marciano Brunette and Demi Engemann have reached an out-of-court settlement in a federal defamation lawsuit tied to allegations aired on reality television, according to newly filed court documents and statements to USA TODAY.

Agreement will lead to dismissal with prejudice

Brunette, 33, who appeared as a server on Season 2 of Hulu’s "Vanderpump Villa," filed the defamation suit in December against Engemann, 32, and Jeff Jenkins Production Company. The suit accused Engemann and the production company of publishing "false accusations of sexual assault and branding Marciano a 'sexual predator'" on the Hulu series and alleged the producers used those accusations as a primary storyline.

In a motion filed Wednesday, Aug. 5, Brunette notified the U.S. District Court in Utah that the parties had reached a settlement and plan to submit a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice, which would prevent the same claims from being brought again once a final judgment is entered.

“Demi Engemann, Jeff Jenkins Productions LLC, and Marciano Brunette have reached an agreement out of court resolving all claims among them. The parties will have no further comment on the matter.”

The statement was provided to USA TODAY by a representative for Engemann. USA TODAY has contacted a representative for Brunette for comment, according to the reporting.

Allegations, timeline and legal claims

The litigation grew out of an alleged incident in August 2024 during production of "Vanderpump Villa" in Italy. Brunette said he and Engemann shared a consensual kiss while she was a guest and he worked as a server. Engemann later discussed being "sexually assaulted" and groped on Season 3 of the series "Mormon Wives," which premiered in November 2025, according to court papers.

Brunette’s complaint said Engemann’s statements were false and that the production exploited those allegations as a central storyline. The filing also alleged that Engemann changed her account over time, "reframed the obviously consensual interaction as one of sexual misconduct and then as sexual assault," and pointed to extensive text-message exchanges the two had after the trip.

According to Brunette’s lawyers, the parties "remained in close contact" after the Italy trip and exchanged what the complaint describes as "over a hundred pages of text messages" through March 2025; the complaint asserts that none of those messages indicated a non-consensual encounter.

Potential implications for reality TV and producers

The settlement resolves claims not only between the two on-screen personalities but also involves a production company named in the suit. While the details of the settlement were not disclosed in the court notice or the statement to USA TODAY, a dismissal with prejudice would effectively end the litigation and bar the same claims from returning to court.

Legal disputes like this one underscore tensions that can arise when personal allegations become central to televised storylines. Producers, networks and on-screen participants have faced increasing scrutiny over how real-life allegations are presented and whether such portrayals can give rise to defamation claims.

• Parties involved: Marciano Brunette; Demi Engemann; Jeff Jenkins Production Company
• Core allegation: Brunette accused Engemann of making false sexual-assault claims and the show of exploiting those claims
• Legal outcome expected: Stipulation to dismiss the case with prejudice

Until the court docket reflects the final stipulation and any accompanying orders, the precise terms of the private settlement remain unknown. Both the public and industry observers will likely be watching whether this case prompts additional scrutiny of how streaming reality series handle sensitive personal allegations.