Will Smith is being sued by a violinist who has accused the rapper and actor of sexual harassment and wrongful termination.
Musician Brian King Joseph named Smith, 57, and Treybull Studios Management as defendants in the lawsuit filed on 30 December, according to US media.
Smith’s lawyer has denied the claims, telling the Daily Beast: “Mr Joseph’s allegations concerning my client are false, baseless, and reckless. They are categorically denied, and we will use all legal means available to address these claims and to ensure that the truth is brought to light.”
The Independent has contacted Smith’s lawyer and representatives for comment.
Variety reports that in the suit, Joseph, 33, accuses Smith of “predatory behaviour” while he was a part of the band on Smith’s Based on a True Story tour last year.
Joseph claims that Smith had been “grooming and priming” him for “further sexual exploitation” after they first met in November 2024, when Smith hired him to perform at a show in San Diego.
He was subsequently invited to join Smith’s 2025 tour and play on his first album in 20 years, Based on a True Story, which was released in March.
Joseph alleges that Smith told him they had “such a special connection that I don’t have with anyone else”.
The musician, who was a former contestant on America’s Got Talent in 2018, joined the first leg of Smith’s tour in March 2025 for a show in Las Vegas, where hotel rooms had been booked for the band and crew.
Joseph claims he returned to his room to find that someone had “unlawfully” entered the suite, in which he allegedly discovered a beer bottle, wipes, a bottle of HIV medication in someone else’s name, a red backpack, an earring and hospital discharge paperwork belonging to another person.
He alleges there was also a note that said: “Brian, I’ll be back no later [sic] 5.30, just us… Stone F.”
Joseph says he believed this was a message that “an unknown individual would soon return to his room to engage in sexual acts with him”.
After reporting the incident to hotel security and Smith’s tour management, he claims he was accused of lying and “shamed” for what happened.
He claims to have been fired days after the incident, when he was told the tour was “moving in a different direction”. However, another violinist was apparently then booked to replace him.
The lawsuit claims that he suffered from PTSD and financial loss as a result of the termination.
He is suing for retaliation, wrongful termination and sexual harassment, and asks that damages be determined by a jury.
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