Thread by @latimes

Randall Emmett, a once high-flying Hollywood producer, faces lawsuits and mounting debts, as well as allegations of abuse against women, assistants and business partners.

Read the investigation by @AmyKinLA and @MegJamesLAT. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

Randall Emmett was fuming during his first time in the director’s chair. For the last half-hour on the set of “Midnight in the Switchgrass,” the filmmaker and his colleagues had been trying to persuade Bruce Willis to kick open a door. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

A voice coming through the actor’s earpiece coached him through lines. A stunt coordinator gently attempted to guide him. Yet, take after take, Willis did not seem to understand, according to seven crew members who were present for the late evening shoot. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

Emmett rose from behind the video monitor and mimed the actions, urging Willis to emulate him. When the effort failed, the director left the set in frustration, three of the crew members said.

“Did I do something wrong?” Willis asked. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

That night, Emmett’s then fiancee, Lala Kent, said Emmett called her crying.

“It’s just so sad,” Kent recalled Emmett saying in a call overheard by two other people. “Bruce can’t remember any of his lines. He doesn’t know where he is.” lat.ms/3ug4K9P

But in the 15 months after filming “Midnight in the Switchgrass,” Emmett made five more movies with Willis. Emmett, in a statement to The Times, denied the conversation with Kent occurred or that he was aware of Willis’ health issues. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

On that day, few people outside the insular world of low-budget action filmmaking knew Willis was battling a condition that made it difficult for him to understand or express speech. But as the Times previously reported, it was an open secret on sets. latimes.com/entertainment-…

“Our stunt coordinator mentioned he was struggling,” said Alicia Haverland, a property master on “Midnight in the Switchgrass.” “Our first AD saw he was struggling. You would have to be blind to not see him struggling.” lat.ms/3ug4K9P

In March, Bruce Willis’ family announced he had been diagnosed with aphasia and was ending his career. latimes.com/entertainment-…

Willis’ enduring appeal had helped propel Emmett’s production company, Emmett/Furla Oasis, to success; the 51-year-old producer used the Willis name and face to sell his films around the world. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

Since 2006, the actor has appeared in two dozen of the firm’s projects — and the pace of the output heightened as Willis’ health declined. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

A review of hundreds of court filings, internal company records and interviews with three dozen former associates depict a crumbling empire. Emmett faces lawsuits, mounting debts and allegations of abuse against women, assistants and business partners. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

He is accused of offering acting work in exchange for sexual favors and forcing assistants to conduct dangerous and illegal activity on his behalf. Through his spokeswoman Sallie Hofmeister, Emmett denied these allegations. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

Emmett used an array of tactics to try to keep these allegations secret, including entering into nondisclosure agreements and allegedly promising a payment of about $200,000 to a female accuser, which Emmett denies. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

Emmett and his company now confront nearly a dozen lawsuits, including several from former financiers, an insurance company and a prior landlord, all clamoring to be repaid their portion of more than $25 million in outstanding loans & disputed payments. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

The Writers Guild of America West won a $541,464 judgment against Emmett/Furla Oasis last year after it sued on behalf of writers who alleged they were short changed for their work on an Emmett project. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

“His normal mode of business is being sketchy,” said Teresa Huang, a writer on that project. “He just spins all these plates in the air and doesn’t care how they crash.” lat.ms/3ug4K9P

In a statement, Emmett rejected Huang’s assessment and blamed the allegations contained in this story on Lala Kent, a reality TV star with whom he has a child. lat.ms/3ug4K9P

“These allegations are false and part of a now-familiar smear campaign orchestrated by Randall’s ex-fiancee to sway their custody dispute,” said Hofmeister. Emmett and Kent, a cast member on “Vanderpump Rules,” currently share custody of their child. lat.ms/3ug4K9P