Rachel ‘Raygun’ Gunn has broken her silence over a storm over a musical that was set to depict her journey at the Paris Olympics.
Raygun: The Musical had been written by comedian Stephanie Broadbride, but it was initially shut down by the Olympic breakdancer’s lawyers over an intellectual property dispute.
The decision had sparked a storm of criticism online, with The Sydney Morning Herald revealing on Wednesday that Raygun’s legal counsel had sent a letter to a comedy club where the performance was set to be hosted, requesting that they cover legal fees of $10,000 incurred by Raygun.
The breakdancer had copped a lot of flack online in the wake of the claims, but a new twist in the saga has unfolded, with Raygun taking to Instagram to clarify the situation before stating that both parties involved in the dispute had reached a resolution.
‘It’s been a big couple of weeks. Yeah, it’s been a wild ride,’ Raygun said in a video on the social media platform. ‘But I’m really pleased to say that we’ve resolved everything. My team’s been working with Steph’s team and we’ve managed to come to an agreement and she still gets to go ahead with the musical. She’s got a new name. New poster. And she still gets to take that show on the road.
‘I’m really happy for her and I wish her all the best with the show and with the tour.’
Rachel ‘Raygun’ Gunn has issued a statement on Instagram, confirming that the legal dispute between her and a comedian over a musical depicting her Olympic Games has been resolved
Reports had emerged on Wednesday claiming that Raygun’s lawyers had requested a comedy club reimburse them $10,000. Gunn has since spoken to clarify the situation
The Olympian subsequently clarified the situation over claims around her legal fees, insisting: ‘We have not sought any costs from all this.
‘So there’s a lot of talk around this $10,000, that was from really early on, day one, my lawyers were acting on my behalf. They’d sent out letters and you know asked for a response by a certain time.
‘They didn’t hear a response and we were worried that we might have to go to court.
‘The $10k would just be my potential legal costs if we had to go to court. But fortunately, we didn’t and that’s all been addressed with Steph’s statement. She issued an apology today and addressed some of the misinformation and hurtful commentary that’s been going around.
‘But we’re not seeking any costs. I said before it’s not about the money, it is still not about the money. Not from Steph, not from the comedy club. In our view it’s all resolved and there’s not going to be any more legal proceedings form us. It was an intellectual property issue and now we have put it to bed.’
The musical was set to depict the breakdancer’s Olympic journey over a 90-minute show and featured original songs including ‘You May Be A B-Girl But You’ll Always Be An A Girl To Me’ and ‘I Would Have Won But I Pulled A Muscle’.
Broadbridge also took to Instagram to release a statement following the news.
She apologised to the Olympian for any ‘negative backlash’ she had received online before stating she had changed the name of the show to Breaking: The Musical. The poster for the show has also been updated to include a silhouette of a kangaroo instead of a silhouette of a person who appeared to simulate Raygun’s Olympic breaking moves.
The letter, which was revealed by The Sydney Morning Herald, had been sent early on in the dispute resolution process. Raygun said the $10k fee was only if both parties went to court
The performance, which was entitled Raygun the Musical, was written by comedian Stephanie Broadbridge (pictured) and was due to take place at Kinselas in Darlinghurst on December 7
The comedian behind the Raygun musical is launching a new breakdance-inspired show
Broadbridge told her 12,000 Instagram followers: ‘I acknowledge again, that I did not contact Raygun before I created the title and poster, which used the word Raygun and her silhouette.
‘It was never my intention to mislead people into thinking that she was involved in the production. She is not and continues to not be attached to this project in any way.
‘I have changed the name of the show and the silhouette and will not use her name or the silhouette ever again.’
Her new show will tour Adelaide between February and March, Melbourne in April and Sydney in May.
Broadbridge added: ‘I am deeply sorry to learn that Raygun has faced negative backlash as a result of the media attention around the cancellation of the preview for the musical.
‘The last thing I wanted was for anyone to experience hate or distress from the situation. ‘
The show’s poster claims it is ‘a completely legal parody musical’.
The Sydney Morning Herald issued a report on Wednesday that claimed to reveal the contents of a letter that had been sent to Darlinghurst’s iD Comedy Club owner Anthony Skinner, which Raygun claimed had been sent early on in the process.
The Olympian had previously offered an explanation over the decision to shut down the musical
Skinner had spoken to 6PR Radio Perth Live presenter Oliver Peterson on Thursday, to admit his relief that the legal issue had been dropped.
‘It’s a great day for comedy,’ he said.
He added: ‘To be honest I can’t harp on too much about it because everything’s worked out fairly well.’
Raygun rose to fame earlier this year following her performances at the Paris Olympics.
She was awarded zero points for her three performances at the Games but has become a cult hero around the world, with many people recently dressing up as the Olympic star for Halloween.
In recent months, the 36-year-old has also been seen going for dinner with celebrities including Boy George and Richard Branson, while she was hailed by Adele in the middle of one of the muscian’s concerts.
Raygun also thanked Broadbridge for making her statement, while adding she wanted to put the saga to bed for good, before she apologised to her social media followers.
‘This has been a stressful time for me and it’s been tough for me. I know that I’m not the only one. I know this has been tough for Steph and everyone in her show and a lot of other people and it’s never been my intention to cause any hurt or distress.
‘This is a totally new environment for me to be in and I just want to say sorry for any hurt caused.
‘Because I’m certainly not doing that intentionally. I want to thank the people who have supported me through this wild ride again.
Raygun added she was really keen to ‘put the saga to bed’ before thanking her supporters for reaching out to spread positivity and kindness.
‘2024 has been a bit of a tough year for me but I’m looking forward to 2025,’ she added. ‘I’m going to be manifesting some positivity.’