Revilla reacts angrily to Juan Carlos I's lawsuit: "I've been harsh with him, but he deserves it."

BarcelonaMiguel Ángel Revilla didn't expect to receive a lawsuit at 82 years old, much less from Juan Carlos I. The former president of Cantabria learned the news on Tuesday while playing his first acting role in the filming of a movie by Antonio Resines. And the first reaction was one of "rage" and "anger": "Why me?" he asked this Wednesday at a press conference at the headquarters of the Regionalist Party of Cantabria (PRC). The party's secretary general denied having committed any crime and made it clear that he does not regret his "permanent denunciation" of the emeritus, which he has made in recent years and which he once again reflects on in his latest book: "He is harsh with the king, but he deserves it," he said.

From his exile in Abu Dhabi, Juan Carlos I asks the Cantabrian politician for 50,000 euros, now a regional deputy, for having "seriously slandered" him in public statements made between May 2022 and January 2025. According to Guadalupe Sánchez, the lawyer for the emeritus, one of those who also defends Isabel Díaz Ayuso's partner, these are statements made by Felipe VI's father. Revilla, however, denied having hurled "insults" at the former monarch: "I haven't said anything that hasn't been said before or anything that isn't true," she said. And that's how she will now defend him in court, with the help of Catalan lawyer José María Fuster-Fabra, who, coincidentally, is a member of the PRC.

A regular guest on various media outlets, where he has often attacked the man who went from being a "myth" to "the disappointment" of his life—as he has referred to the emeritus—the former president of Cantabria has repeatedly questioned the fact that the lawsuit was filed against him: "Why me?" "Why hasn't he filed a complaint against Bárbara Rey, who has said terrible things, or against Corinna?" he added. His suspicion, in fact, is that the emeritus is using her as a "warning" to silence other voices against him.

Revilla, who at the beginning of the press conference had vowed not to go all out or "add fuel to the fire," was not above his words. He described it as "unfair" and "petty" that a person "inviolable" and "immune" before the law should sue a "citizen." He said this in reference to the inviolability clause of the monarchy, included in article 56.3 of the Constitution, although it is only applicable to the King of Spain during his term of office and, therefore, no longer protects Juan Carlos I.

"If a gentleman is stealing, I cannot remain silent."

The regional deputy stated that he never had any problem apologizing when he made a mistake, although he also made it clear that he doesn't believe he "messed up" in this case. "If I see someone stealing, I can't remain silent, I'm sorry," he said. "Throughout my career, I have never tolerated corruption," he concluded. Among the comments he has made in recent years about Juan Carlos I, with whom he once had a close relationship, Revilla has said that "he has a lot of money abroad" and that "he has deceived us Spaniards" and that "we have paid for all his mistresses."

The emeritus's lawyer is requesting Revilla's rectification "through the same means and publicly" and compensation of 50,000 euros for the "moral damages caused" to Juan Carlos I, a sum that she assures "will be given in full" to Cáritas. Royal sources distanced themselves from the move on Tuesday, asserting that "it is a personal initiative" of the father of the current King of Spain, with whom he had not previously consulted.

From the Spanish government, both Vice President Yolanda Díaz and Minister Ernest Urtasun, also from Sumar, have considered that what Juan Carlos should do is provide explanations and be accountable for his tax situation. Meanwhile, in an interview on Antena 3, the leader of the People's Party (PP), Alberto Núñez Feijóo, considered the controversy "unnecessary" and "untimely" and refused to escalate it because, in his opinion, it harms the institutions. "I truly believe that at this moment in Spain, all of this is not necessary," he said.