The maelstrom surrounding the Paris Hilton sex tape is showing no signs of dying down.
Now that most of the world is well aware of the steamy sexual stylings of the X-rated heiress and her costar, Rick Solomon, after an excerpt of the tape hit the Internet last week, the true excitement is in the multimillion-dollar lawsuits created by the tape's very existence.
First the litigious Solomon sued Paris and her family for $10 million for allegedly saying unsavory and slanderous things about him. Then he sued the Seattle-based Internet porn company Marvad Corp. for more than $10 million for illegally distributing his turn as an amateur porn star.
Now Marvad Corp. is turning the tables and suing the man it bought the infamous footage from--namely, Solomon's former roommate, Don Thrasher.
Marvad claims Thrasher misled the company into believing that he owned the rights to the tape.
As a result of Thrasher's trickery, Marvad "suffered substantial damages arising out of the misrepresentations by Thrasher and his agents," according to the lawsuit.
The breach-of-contract suit seeks more than $10 million in damages from Thrasher.
"There was millions of dollars at stake here," Marvad publicist Kevin Bragg said. The company reached an agreement with Hilton not to distribute any footage after learning she had not given her consent, Bragg said.
For his part, Thrasher has not backed down from his claim that Solomon was involved in marketing the video to the company.
"We had an agreement to sell the tape," he said, per the Associated Press. "He gave me the tape. Period."
Solomon has claimed that Thrasher stole the tape without his knowledge; however, Thrasher claims he paid Solomon half of the $50,000 he received for the sale of the footage.
Meanwhile, Paris Hilton, who has kept a remarkably low profile since the video's debut on the Internet, told the Associated Press she never expected the tape to become public.
"I feel embarrassed and humiliated, especially because my parents and the people who love me have been hurt," the socialite said Monday. "I was in an intimate relationship and never, ever thought that these things would become public."
Hilton's next onscreen turn most likely won't set as many tongues a-wagging. Fox has announced it plans to go ahead with its reality show, The Simple Life, in which the heiress and her star-crossed socialite pal Nicole Richie (Lionel's daughter, currently serving a stint in rehab for heroin addiction) are transported to rural Arkansas to experience life on a farm.