Will Smith sued over allegations he retaliated in opposition to violinist who reported sexual harassment

A violinist accused Will Smith of retaliation after he talked about he used to be fired for reporting sexual harassment while on tour with the actor and rapper, in accordance with a lawsuit filed earlier this week.

The swimsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court docket, is linked to what the criticism describes as a “resort intrusion” in Las Vegas ideal March that the swimsuit says Brian King Joseph at once reported to resort security, police and the artist’s representatives.

Days later, in accordance with the criticism, a representative for Smith accused Joseph of lying and fired him.

A management firm linked to Smith, 57, is additionally named as a defendant in the swimsuit. The criticism does no longer specify damages.

Smith’s lawyer, Allen B. Grodsky, talked about: “Mr. Joseph’s allegations pertaining to my client are flawed, baseless, and reckless. They are categorically denied, and we will rep a contrivance to bid all just skill on hand to tackle these claims and to form obvious that the reality is dropped at gentle.”

In step with the swimsuit, Joseph began performing with Smith in December 2024 and joined the artist’s tour for his most latest album, “In step with a Staunch Memoir,” ideal year. They began spending time alone together, the criticism states, and Smith allegedly told Joseph that they’d a “particular connection” that the artist had with no person else.

On or spherical March 20, while in Las Vegas for a efficiency, Joseph talked about he returned to his resort room spherical 11 p.m. to search out that somebody perceived to have unlawfully entered while he used to be long previous, the criticism states. In step with resort security, there have been no signs of forced entry and most efficient of us that have been allotment of Smith’s management team had win admission to to the room while he used to be long previous, the swimsuit says.

Among the objects Joseph talked about he found have been wipes, a beer bottle, an earring, a red backpack, HIV remedy with one other individual’s title, health center discharge kinds for somebody Joseph didn’t know and a display shroud that talked about: “Brian, I’ll be support no later [sic] 5:30, just us (drawn coronary heart), Stone F,” the criticism states.

“Plaintiff feared that an unknown particular individual would soon return to his room to have interplay in sexual acts with Plaintiff,” the criticism states.

After Joseph reported the monstrous intrusion to resort security, Smith’s representatives and police, the criticism alleges, a representative for Smith blamed him for the incident and talked about he used to be being terminated.

The swimsuit quotes the representative allegedly announcing, in allotment, “Everybody looks telling me that what occurred to you is a lie, nothing occurred, and you made the total thing up. So, bid me, why did you lie and form this up?”

There used to be no effort to overview Joseph’s security considerations, the swimsuit alleges, and after he used to be fired, one other violinist used to be employed, even supposing the criticism says Joseph used to be told the tour used to be “arresting in a different direction.”