Chappell Roan, who won a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2025, has found herself the subject of intense online backlash after an encounter with a security guard at a hotel left a little girl in tears and her parents fuming.
Now, the security guard at the center of the incident, Pascal Duvier, is speaking out on what he says really happened.
The controversy, which took place in Brazil, involved the 11-year-old daughter of Catherine Harding and Jude Law. The little girl, whose name is Ada, also happens to be the stepdaughter of Brazilian soccer star Jorginho Frello.
Frello claims that Ada spotted Roan at the hotel, recognized her, and smiled at her, but did not approach her. A short time later, the little girl and her mother were aggressively approached by a security guard believed to be from Roan’s team. The guard accused the child of “harassment” and “disrespect,” even threatening to file a complaint with the hotel.
Now, the security guard is taking full responsibility for the incident in a statement shared on his Instagram page.
“I do not normally address online rumors, but the accusations currently circulating are false and constitute defamation,” he wrote.
“I take full responsibility for the interactions on March 21st. I was at the hotel on behalf of another individual, and I was not part of the personal security team of Chappell Roan,” he went on. “The actions I took were not on behalf of Chappell Roan, her personal security team, her management, or any other individuals.”
The security guard went on to state that he made a “judgment call” based on what he believed to be a “heightened security risk” and events that occurred at the hotel days earlier.
“My sole interaction with the mother was calm and with good intentions, and the outcome of the encounter is regretful,” he wrote.
