Professional volleyball player Gabrielle Reece and her pro-surfer husband Laird Hamilton backed out of their commitment to a reality series for a competing show, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
7Iron Media claims Reece and Hamilton signed a written agreement in 2015 to be part of a reality series focusing on their professional and personal activities, and agreed not to enter into any third-party agreements that were substantially similar or would interfere with the project.
“No sooner had this contract been signed than Ms. Reece finalized a separate deal with Sony Pictures Television to develop and star in a reality television program on NBC titled ‘Strong,'” states the complaint. “After this flagrant breach of their existing contract, both Ms. Reece and her husband Mr. Hamilton completely abandoned their obligations to plaintiff.”
The statement, filed by 7Iron’s attorney Bryan Freedman, claims the celebrity couple repeatedly canceled development meetings, failed to communicate and “otherwise made it impossible for Plaintiff to develop the television program.”
7Iron is suing for breach of contract and unfair business practices and is seeking damages, restitution and an injunction to keep Reece and Hamilton from participating in the NBC show.
Representatives for Reece and Hamilton did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
