Actor and rapper Will Smith has been sued for sexual harassment, retaliation and wrongful termination by a violinist who toured with him last year. The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, names Smith and his company Treyball Studios Management as defendants.
The complainant, violinist Brian King Joseph, who finished third in Season 13 of America’s Got Talent, alleges he faced sexual misconduct while working as part of Smith’s touring entourage and was later dismissed after reporting the incident.
Joseph had posted on social media in the days before filing the lawsuit, saying he had been hired for “a major, major tour with somebody who is huge in the industry” but could not discuss certain matters because of legal restrictions.
He wrote, “Getting fired or getting blamed or shamed or threatened or anything like that, simply for reporting sexual misconduct or safety threats at work, is not OK. And I know that there’s a lot of other people out there who have been afraid to speak up, and I understand. If that’s you, I see you. More updates to come soon.”
According to the lawsuit, Joseph was hired by Smith in November 2024 to perform at a show and later invited to join his tour. The filing states that Smith engaged in what it describes as “predatory behaviour” and “deliberately grooming and priming Mr Joseph for further sexual exploitation”.
The suit quotes Smith as telling Joseph, “you and I have such a special connection, that I don’t have with anyone else,” along with similar remarks.
Joseph performed during the Las Vegas leg of Smith’s Based on a True Story Tour in March. During the tour, Joseph alleges that his hotel room key and bag went missing. While the bag was later recovered by hotel management, the lawsuit claims someone had entered his room while he was away.
Returning to the room, Joseph says he found wipes, a bottle of HIV medication bearing another person’s name, a beer bottle, an earring and a note that read, “Brian, I’ll be back no later [than] 5:30, just us,” signed “Stone F”.
Hotel security found no signs of forced entry, and the filing states only members of Smith’s management team had access to the room at the time.
Joseph reported the incident to hotel management, Smith’s representatives and local police. He was allegedly dismissed from the tour a few days later.
The suit quotes a representative of Smith as saying, “Everyone is telling me that what happened to you is a lie, nothing happened, and you made the whole thing up. So, tell me, why did you lie and make this up?”
The filing claims Joseph suffered post-traumatic stress and financial losses following his dismissal and alleges that the termination was in retaliation for reporting the incident.