Avicii’s Former Manager has Reportedly Filed a Lawsuit Against Director of ‘Avicii: True Stories’ Documentary

Avicii’s former manager, Arash "Ash" Pournouri is reportedly suing Levan Tsikurishvili for defamation. Tsikurishvili directed the 2017 documentary Avicii: True Stories. The lawsuit is centered around Pournouri’s portrayal in the film.

Swedish outlets The Sweden Herald and Expressen published articles stating that Pournouri filed the lawsuit on March 24 in Stockholm District Court. Pournouri claimed that Tsikurishvili misrepresented his role in managing Avicii, real name Tim Bergling, which has harmed Pournouri's reputation and affected his other professional ventures. 

On March 25, Pournouri made a statement via Instagram surrounding his decision to sue:

“Lies and false accusations by certain individuals continue with the aim of causing me harm and to profit from a tragedy. Consequently, I have been left with no other choice but to file lawsuits with the main objective for the lies to stop and the facts to be known, once and for all.”

The post went on to say that his family has been affected as a result of the documentary as well:

“Enough is enough. In a recent interview focusing on my current business ventures and what I have focused all my energy on building back up, I confirmed that the past few years have been hell for me and my family. I have endured a false narrative which, out of respect for Tim’s memory and family, I have actively chosen not to engage in.”

Tsikurishvili has made his own Instagram post seemingly addressing Pournouri’s situation. In a translation from Swedish provided by Resident Advisor, Tsikurishvili said:

"The person who has the most opinions about the film should rather be thankful to me and my team. We chose not to delve into certain subplots—including his—because the film and the story were about Tim. Had we done so, it would have been 1000 percent worse for him personally."

Avicii: True Stories was released on October 26, 2017, a few months before Bergling passed away by suicide at 28 years old. Since his death another documentary, I’m Tim, was released on Netflix in 2024. Bergling was the mastermind behind many classic EDM hits such as “Levels,” “Wake Me Up,” and “The Nights.”