Nirvana Sued For Child Pornography Over ‘Nevermind’ Album Cover

Spencer Elden, the iconic cover star of Nevermind by Nirvana, is suing the band for child sexual exploitation, arguing that he could not have consented to appearing naked in the photograph that adorns the famous album.

In a lawsuit filed overnight, Elden’s lawyer claimed that the cover star — only a few months old when the photograph was taken — did not authorise “the use of any images of Spencer or of his likeliness”, calling the photograph “commercial child pornography.”

Elden is suing for a range of offences, including the distribution of sexually explicit materials, gross negligence, and sex trafficking. The suit claims that Elden “was forced to engage in commercial sexual acts while under the age of 18 years old.”

The suit includes the claim that Elden was permanently harmed by the imagery. That harm “includes but is not limited to extreme and permanent emotional distress with physical manifestations, interference with his normal development and educational progress, lifelong loss of income earning capacity, loss of past and future wages, past and future expenses for medical and psychological treatment, loss of enjoyment of life, and other losses to be described and proven at trial of this matter.”

Elden’s lawyers are hoping that the suit will be settled by a trial by jury.

Elden, a skateboarder, has given a variety of interviews about his involvement in the Nirvana album cover over the years. In at least one, Elden said he was “a little upset” about being the cover star. “I just woke up already being a part of this huge project. It’s pretty difficult — you feel like you’re famous for nothing, but you didn’t really do anything but their album.”