David Copperfield left his luxury New York apartment in disrepair

Magic Star in Court
David Copperfield left the luxury penthouse in disrepair.

August 8, 2024 at 4:42 PM

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Mold, dirt, damage: Things aren't looking so magical in superstar magician David Copperfield's New York apartment right now. Which is why the 67-year-old is now having to answer in court.

He has cut himself in half, seemingly crossed the Great Wall of China and made the Statue of Liberty disappear. In the 1980s, audiences of millions watched David Copperfield's amazing magic tricks on numerous television specials. But “Abracadabra” or “Hex, hex” doesn't seem to have helped the magician, who became a star through his television appearances, clean the average house.

Copperfield's $7 million apartment in the exclusive Galleria in New York is in such poor condition that experts fear mold and mildew could spread to the apartments below and jeopardize the structural integrity of the entire building, The Independent reported.

That's according to a lawsuit filed by the owners of The Galleria on Tuesday. In it, Copperfield, 67, the world's highest-paid magician, is accused of causing damage worth around $3 million (around €2.7 million). And not just to his “previously pristine multi-storey penthouse”, but also to other tenants' apartments. In addition to the apparent deterioration of the former luxury penthouse, the plaintiffs also fear potential health risks for other residents.

Copperfield is said to have “destroyed” the apartment.

Photos available to the court show stained carpets, water damage, dirt and mold everywhere in the rooms and bathrooms of the apartment. Copperfield left the apartment, which he had not lived in for some time but still owned, “vandalizing” it and leaving it in a “horrific” state, according to the lawsuit. Copperfield, who was in a relationship with supermodel Claudia Schiffer, is said to “refuse to acknowledge the consequences of his actions and denies any responsibility for the damage he caused to the building and his former neighbors.”

“Pictures are worth a thousand words,” Joshua Strykoff, the lawyer who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Galleria, told The Independent. “In my opinion, the photos of the completely neglected and filthy apartment need no further explanation.”