Hollywood director’s son accused of lewd water polo acts goes underground — as his mother provides smug four-word message

A Los Angeles water polo star has gone underground after being accused of sexually abusing and racially tormenting his black teammate.

Lucca Van der Woude — a former Harvard-Westlake College standout as soon as thought of a future Olympic prospect — is in hiding after Aidan Romain filed a bombshell lawsuit.

The 18-year-old, who’s the son of longtime movie assistant director Thomas “Basti” Van der Woude, was nowhere to be discovered final week when The Submit visited his mother and father’ palatial house in Costa Mesa.

The elite personal faculty he attends is out on spring break.

However Van der Woude’s mom, Nilda, who allegedly served because the water polo crew’s “crew mother,” coordinating logistics and communications for folks, did present her face.

“Converse with our lawyer,” was her curt response to a reporter who requested after her son. Nilda stated her son wasn’t house, however he was within the space and never away for the break.

Her place because the water polo crew’s “crew mother,” helped cement van der Woude’s standing on the squad, the lawsuit claims.

Van der Woude’s father is a rich Hollywood insider who has labored on dozens of main productions over the previous three many years, together with “Thor: The Darkish World,” “Quick & Livid 5,” “Battleship,” and the collection “Worry the Strolling Useless.”

The celebrated director — identified professionally as Basti — gained a Director’s Guild of America award in 2016 for the HBO movie “Bessie,” the place he was acknowledged for “Excellent Directorial Achievement.

The allegations towards the water polo star surfaced within the swimsuit filed final month by former teammate Romain, who says Van der Woude subjected him to months of racist harassment and sexual abuse whereas taking part in on Harvard-Westlake’s elite crew.

Van der Woude repeatedly sexually assaulted Romain — the one black participant on the crew — and blasted him with racial slurs throughout practices and crew actions whereas they have been minors on the ultra-exclusive Studio Metropolis faculty, the lawsuit claims.

Cops in February 2024 arrested Van der Woude on campus and the athlete later admitted in juvenile courtroom to sexual penetration of a minor with a international object, the Submit beforehand reported.

“It was very troublesome each day to cope with the racial abuse and the sexual abuse,” Romain, who’s presently residing in Barcelona, Spain, advised ABC 7 Eyewitness Information.

“The racial abuse and sexual abuse was a each day foundation factor,” he added. “It occurred in practically each coaching; it will occur many instances each day, typically outdoors of the pool. So, it was actually a troublesome expertise.”

Van der Woude’s lawyer advised Eyewitness Information in March that the allegations will likely be addressed in courtroom, and so they haven’t any intention to “litigate this matter within the media.”

“Mr. Van Der Woude’s denials and different responses will likely be clear and unambiguous in his protection to the criticism at hand,” stated Michael Artan.

Artan couldn’t instantly be reached Sunday for an replace on his consumer.

Romain’s lawsuit additionally names one other participant — Connor Kim, now a water polo participant at Harvard College — as a fellow tormentor who allegedly joined within the racially abusive conduct with van der Woude.

Lillian Chu, Kim’s lawyer, stated the statements made within the criticism about Kim are false.

“Though Connor isn’t a named defendant on this case, it’s necessary to level out that these claims and the assertion that he admitted to wrongdoing are merely not true,” stated Chu.

The swimsuit claims faculty officers and coaches have been repeatedly notified of the twisted hazing however didn’t cease it.

Teammates whipped Romain with train bands in what the lawsuit described as a degrading “re-enactment of slavery,” in a single alleged incident detailed within the criticism.

The lawsuit additional alleges van der Woude violated a court-ordered no-contact order 23 instances by showing on the identical water polo occasions as Romain, in accordance with the outlet.

Harvard-Westlake pushed again on the claims, saying it handled studies of misconduct significantly and complied with necessary reporting obligations.

An announcement from the varsity stated Harvard-Westlake “unequivocally disputes many of those allegations that mischaracterize info and the varsity’s actions.”

“The college handled studies of inappropriate conduct in its water polo program with urgency and seriousness, promptly initiating an investigation and complying with its necessary reporting obligations,”  the assertion sa

However veteran Harvard-Westlake water polo coach Jack Grover is being probed by the US Middle for SafeSport over allegations he didn’t correctly report abuse claims, the Every day Mail reported.

Romain finally fled the US to proceed coaching in Europe after the alleged abuse.

The athlete stated he needs to return to America to attend an Ivy League faculty earlier than hopefully representing the US within the Olympics.

“A part of the explanation why I’m talking up and standing up for myself is in order that others don’t must be in these sorts of conditions,” stated Romain.

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