Elon Musk argues his 'pedo guy' insult wasn't literal because 'if you add guy to something, it's less serious'

Apu Gomes/Getty Images
(Image credit: Apu Gomes/Getty Images)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk argued in his defamation trial Wednesday that when he called a British diver "pedo guy," this was clearly a flippant remark and that using the word "guy" made it "less significant than pedo."

Musk is being sued for defamation by Vernon Unsworth, a diver who helped rescue soccer players trapped in a Thailand cave and who Musk publicly called a "pedo guy" on Twitter last year. The Tesla CEO has been arguing that when he called Unsworth a "pedo guy," he was not legitimately accusing him of being a pedophile, claiming this was simply a common insult used in South Africa, where he grew up, to call someone creepy.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.