David Duchovny sues Daily Mail over cheating story

Cast member David Duchovny attends the movie premiere of ''The X-Files: I Want to Believe'' at the Grauman's Chinese theatre in Hollywood, California July 23, 2008. The movie opens in the U.S. on July 25.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "X-Files" star David Duchovny sued British newspaper the Daily Mail on Wednesday over a story suggesting he cheated on his wife, Tea Leoni, with a tennis player.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges defamation and invasion of privacy. Duchovny is seeking $1 million in damages.

Duchovny, 48, plays a womanizing novelist on the Showtime cable television series "Californication," and in recent weeks he has been treated for sex addiction at a rehabilitation center.

He and Leoni have been married for 11 years, but separated several months ago. The couple have two children.

In his lawsuit, Duchovny accused the Daily Mail of posting a story online on Saturday that said he cheated on Leoni with a tennis instructor named Edit Pakay.

"This is false. It never happened," the lawsuit stated.

A representative for the Daily Mail could not immediately be reached for comment.

Duchovny's lawsuit said the Daily Mail story was taken down from the paper's Web site on Tuesday.

But other news outlets picked up on the story and posted versions on their Web sites, which caused "additional and further damage to David Duchovny," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit also stated that Duchovny never hired Pakay to be his tennis coach. Pakay says she is a friend of Duchovny, and that they played tennis a few times, according to the lawsuit.

Duchovny is set to star in a film called "The Joneses," scheduled for release next year.

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)