Since April, Marvel’s Executive VP of Production, Victoria Alonso discovered a con artist was using her identity to conduct sexually explicit telephone auditions with aspiring actors– a total scammer
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the “Con Queen of Hollywood” has previously impersonated other producers and studio executives. Over the past several years, her targets have included major studio heads like Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy and former Sony head Amy Pascal. After assuming these identities, the Con Queen contacts actors, photographers, stunt performers, military veterans, make-up artists and more for potential sexual or monetary exploitation.
The FBI has taken over the investigation and has created a website for victims of the “so-called” Con Queen of Hollywood, who is being described as a sophisticated swindler who for several years has been impersonating prominent producers, studio executives and other entertainment industry professionals as part of some elaborate financial scam.
The FBI’s San Diego office announced the unveiling of the new site as they “seek victims in Indonesia Showbiz Scam Investigations.” The statement stated that this is an on-going transnational fraud scheme targeting U.S. citizens began in approximately 2013. The FBI is releasing this information to prevent individuals, primarily those who work in the entertainment industry from becoming victims of the scam.
Alonso wasn’t the only Marvel Studios employee affected by the scam. Longtime casting director Sarah Finn, who was responsible for casting almost every Marvel Cinematic Universe film, was also impersonated by the Con Queen. The Con Queen sent out emails claiming to be Finn, then followed up with phone calls in which she impersonated Alonso.
In one such call, the Con Queen instructed actor Brandon Wengrzynek to “audition” with a sexually explicit role. When the process became “uncomfortable,” he stopped and contacted a friend, who confirmed the audition was fake. “She was absolutely convincing,” Wengrzynek recalled. “It just blows my mind how professional the whole thing is.”
The Con Queen uses these “auditions” and fake offers of work to convince victims to come to Indonesia. Despite promises of reimbursement, she has victims pay upfront costs for services like translation, driving and logistical help, then likely pockets the money herself.
Alonso first learned that she had been impersonated in mid-April, about 10 days before the April 26 debut of Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame. One of the movie’s stars told her that a stunt performer friend of his had received what he thought was a call from Alonso in which she purportedly said that Marvel planned to replace actor Jeremy Renner and was looking for another stunt performer.
Alonso corrected her friend, thinking that would be the end of it. Instead, about a month later, she received a call from two lawyers who had been hired by Disney to investigate further.
“Disney never said we think you did this,” says Alonso, “They just said, ‘We need to corroborate that you didn’t.’”
“I want my name to be loud and clear,” Alonso said in response to the incident. “This is not how we work. This is not who we are. We would never ask people to do that.”
Alonso says she wants as many people as possible to be aware that the scam is still ongoing, despite the involvement of law enforcement.
“This person is preying on people’s dreams,” she says, “If something happens to you, report it. If it feels wrong, it is. Walk away.”
Meanwhile, the FBI is advising that this is an ongoing fraud scheme and individuals who have plans to travel to Indonesia for a job opportunity in the entertainment industry should perform additional research and proceed with caution.
So far, the Con Queen remains at large.
