The optometrist suing actor Gwyneth Paltrow over serious injuries he said he suffered on a Utah ski slope in 2016 after a collision with the “Proof” star took the stand Monday during the fifth day of proceedings.
Terry Sanderson told the court he is “living a different life” after the crash, which he blames for “permanent traumatic brain injury, four broken ribs, pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress and disfigurement.”
According to the 76-year-old plaintiff, the aftermath of his run-in with Paltrow has been lonely, due to changes in his personality that caused him to lose his girlfriend and a travel companion, who bluntly told him “I don’t like you anymore.”
Paltrow’s attorneys worked to discredit Sanderson — who’s asking for $300,000 — by claiming he’s exploiting the defendant’s fame and fortune. They pointed to an email the plaintiff sent to his daughter after the collision claiming “I’m famous.”
Sanderson assured jurors he’s “not into celebrity worship,” and wasn’t boasting about his sudden encounter with the Academy Award winner.
“I didn’t pick my words well,” he conceded. “I was really trying to add a little levity to a serious situation and it backfired.”
According to an Independent trial transcript, the plaintiff blamed the wording in his email on “the other personality, which is inhabiting my body right now.”
He testified that Paltrow bares responsibility for him feeling out of sorts following the crash.
Sanderson complained Monday that it was “beyond a doubt wrong” Paltrow seemed indifferent to his alleged injuries.
“I’ve never been hit that hard,” he claimed.
The 50-year-old star testified Friday that Sanderson ran into her on Feb. 26, 2016 on Flagstaff Mountain, which is why his well-being wasn’t her chief priority at the time.
“I think you have to keep in mind when you’re the victim of a crash, right, your psychology is not necessarily thinking about the person who perpetrated it,” she said.
Paltrow plans to countersue for $1 on principle.
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