Justin Sun fights with music mogul David Geffen over $78M sculpture

Justin Sun has been accused of having “seller’s remorse” by movie and music mogul David Geffen after the controversial Tron founder filed a lawsuit accusing Geffen of buying a $78 million sculpture he says was stolen from him by his former art advisor.

In the suit, filed earlier this week, Sun demands that Geffen return the artwork by the Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti or pay “very substantial damages.”

The lawsuit claims that Sun’s former advisor, Xiong Zihan Sydney, forged Sun’s signature, fabricated lawyers overseeing the deal, and sold the art to Geffen’s representatives without Sun’s knowledge.

It also argues that Geffen’s team should have spotted “obvious red flags” such as Xiong’s use of a personal Gmail account.

However, lawyers representing the DreamWorks founder, who has also worked with the likes of Elton John, Aerosmith, and Neil Young, dismissed the suit as “desperate and bizarre,” and claimed that Sun simply has “seller’s remorse.”

Tibor Nagy, managing partner and founder of Nagy Wolf Appleton, told Protos:

“The litigation filed by Mr. Sun is a desperate and bizarre attempt to hide reality. Mr. Sun received two paintings and $10.5 million for the Giacometti sculpture he knowingly sold.

“After trying and failing to sell the paintings, he now wants to retrade the deal based on the implausible claim that his own art advisor and liaison to the art world duped him.”

He added, “Deals often get done in the art world through intermediaries. Mr. Sun knew that then, and he knows it now. If he is now, a year later, unhappy with the deal his intermediary got him, that is not a basis for a claim against Mr. Geffen. Instead, that is what’s termed: seller’s remorse.”

Sun reportedly bought the sculpture for $78.4 million and wanted to sell it for over $80 million. However, Xiong allegedly traded his sculpture for two works of art in Geffen’s possession, worth $55 million, and $10.5 million in cash. 

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Sun apparently uncovered the affair after inquiring about the progress of the sculpture’s sale. The lawsuit claims that Xiong realized Sun would find out about her scheme and she allegedly “confessed to the crime.”

Last November, Sun bought a $6.2 million piece of art called “Comedian” that consisted of a banana taped to a wall. He then filmed himself eating the banana. A CoinDesk article covering the event apparently offended him and he had it removed.

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