“It was never her show,” the Kardashian-Jenner family’s attorney said of Blac Chyna in his closing arguments on Thursday.
Kim Kardashian had Pete Davidson in her corner on Thursday as Blac Chyna’s trial against her family came to a close.
The Kardashians star, 41, endured another day of court as attorneys for both sides gave their closing arguments in the lawsuit — and Davidson, 28, was present at the courthouse for moral support, PEOPLE confirms.
Kris Jenner, Kylie Jenner and Khloé Kardashian were also in court on Thursday.
Chyna — born Angela White — is currently suing Kim, mom Kris Jenner, and sisters Khloé Kardashian and Kylie Jenner for defamation and intentional interference with her contract at E! The 33-year-old model was previously engaged to Kris’ son, Rob Kardashian, with whom she shares 5-year-old daughter Dream and starred alongside on E!’s Rob & Chyna.
In his argument, the Kardashian-Jenner family’s attorney Michael G. Rhodes spoke about Chyna and Rob’s relationship, claiming that “at some point they were happy” but it just didn’t work out.
Rhodes explained that at the crux of the case was Chyna’s belief that their E! reality show Rob & Chyna, which she alleges the family had axed after one season, was about her.
“It was never her show. This is the central problem in this case. She thinks this show was about her. It wasn’t her show. It was a show about a relationship. It was about both of them,” he argued.
“It’s just one of those relationships that didn’t work. This was supposed to be a lighthearted romantic comedy. Rob & Chyna in Love was the working title. It’s what the network was trying to produce. The show’s premise was to be lighthearted, a romantic family comedy,” Rhodes continued.
Referencing the negative press surrounding Chyna, he added: “This wasn’t the kind of content the network wanted to put out. The network wanted the same kind of tone as Keeping Up with the Kardashians. And, yeah, the Kardashians have problems. They’re real people too but there’s a point it becomes too much. It became dark and heavy.”
“This is a real family. Yeah, they’re famous but they are real people,” he added of the Kardashian-Jenner clan.
Rhodes noted that there was an option for season 2 of Rob & Chyna, but never an obligation or requirement to renew the series.
“The relationship at the heart of Rob & Chyna was unraveling. They were on/off, on/off but by February it’s gone off the cliffs,” Rhodes said, before noting, “This doesn’t have a happy ending. It’s kind of sad. This is a very sad story. It’s grim.”
“If you’re the network executive is this the show you want to air?” he added. “Everybody tried to save the show. They weren’t trying to kill the show. They were trying to buy time to save it; to pave a road to save it.”
Meanwhile, Chyna’s attorney Lynne Ciani disputed claims of a “murderous attack” against Rob, 35, arguing that he had no marks on his body and didn’t call the police or go to a hospital afterward. She also argued that if he truly believed Chyna intended to kill him, Rob wouldn’t have left their daughter in the house.
“They’re real. They have their ups and downs,” Ciani said.
Additionally, Ciani disputed claims of damage to Kylie’s home and said “if a murderous attack” had happened, the damage would’ve been much worse, and later asked where the security footage was. “Video footage is your friend if you’re being accused of something you didn’t do,” Ciani said.
Speaking to a gingerbread house that Chyna allegedly destroyed in her fight with Rob, Rhodes asked the model, “Why would you attack a gingerbread house in your rage? What does that represent?”
“It represented everything about the Kardashian brand,” he added. “It’s everything she’s not going to be. They tried. They did their best but everything they were concerned about came true.”
Chyna has been in a legal battle with the Kardashians since 2017. She sued Rob and his family that October, accusing them of damaging her brand as well as verbally and physically abusing her. The lawsuit came after Rob leaked nude photos of Chyna on Instagram. Amid his social media rampage, Rob also accused Chyna of drug abuse, alcohol abuse and infidelity.
Chyna claimed this incident and the family’s influence over E! probably resulted in Rob & Chyna’s cancellation, despite reports of it being renewed for a second season. Because of this, her legal team has since argued that Chyna has likely missed out on millions of earned dollars from related appearances and social media posts.
Chyna, in turn, said she’s suing the famous family “to stand up for [her] legal rights and to be an example to [her] kids.”
“What they did was so wrong. I am so thankful that a jury will finally listen to what really happened behind closed doors — the lies that were told and the damage that was done,” she tweeted before the trial. “At the end of the trial, I’m going to be able to proudly tell King and Dream that I did everything I could to right the wrong that was done to me. And that, in life, it is my hope that they will be able to stand up for themselves when it matters too.”
Although Chyna previously dropped Rob from the lawsuit against his mother and sisters, she’s suing him over the revenge porn he posted. That trial is expected to start soon.
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