The embattled chairman of the Los Angeles Olympic organizing committee with ties to Jeffrey Epstein now faces fresh trouble—this time from Papa John’s pizza.
Papa John’s founder John Schnatter sued LA28 head Casey Wasserman and his creative agency, Laundry Service, in 2019, alleging Wasserman leaked recordings of the pizza mogul using the N-word, according to Deadline. Schnatter claims the leak was retaliation after he attempted to fire the agency. In an allegedly brutal, back-stabbing moment, Laundry Service then cut ties with Papa John’s over the scandal.
Wasserman has denied Schnatter’s allegations. But Schnatter’s legal team is now forcing the sports and entertainment titan to sit for a second deposition after newly released files from the Department of Justice placed him in Epstein’s orbit.
“Following recent revelations about Casey Wasserman’s potential ties to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Mr. Schnatter’s team reviewed documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice,” Schnatter spokesperson Mark Serrano told Deadline, according to an article published Wednesday.
“They learned that not only did Mr. Wasserman and his then-wife receive packages from Epstein and Maxwell in late-2002, but also that in 2013, Epstein purchased a ticket to a fundraiser for the MPTF, of which Mr. Wasserman is a longtime board member,” the spokesperson went on.
“This new information has raised serious questions about Mr. Wasserman’s prior testimony as a witness in Mr. Schnatter’s lawsuit against Laundry Service.”
Wasserman has until the end of February to respond. Trial is scheduled for June 15 in Kentucky federal court.
The Daily Beast has reached out to legal representatives for Wasserman and Schnatter.
This is just the latest in the pile-on on Wasserman following his appearance in the Epstein files. The executive, 51, announced last week that he would sell his talent agency—which represents thousands of notable figures, including Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Kendrick Lamar, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto—and focus on his civic role as leader of the 2028 Games.
But even that role is now under threat. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is among those calling for Wasserman to step down.
Justice Department records revealed Wasserman flew on Epstein’s private jet in 2002 and exchanged messages with Maxwell.
“Where are you, I miss you,” Wasserman wrote to Maxwell on April 1, 2003. “I will be in nyc for 4 days starting april 22… can we book that massage now?”
The pair exchanged suggestive messages for at least a year, according to the files.
Wasserman apologized after the documents became public.
“I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell, which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light,” Wasserman said in a statement to the Daily Beast last month. “I never had a personal or business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. As is well documented, I went on a humanitarian trip as part of a delegation with the Clinton Foundation in 2002 on the Epstein plane. I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them.”
Wasserman, grandson of Hollywood power broker Lew Wasserman, is not accused of criminal wrongdoing related to Epstein—but it’s far from his first scandal. In 2024, reports detailing his sexual relationships with numerous junior employees prompted Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Billie Eilish to leave his agency.
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