Will Smith Wants Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Tossed

Will Smith wants to close the chapter on his legal drama!

The actor, just as his wife did, is now asking the court to trash the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against him by his former tour violinist, Brian King Joseph, last month.

Will Smith's wife was sued by his former friend, Bilaal Salaam, for claims of a threat to his life and a smear campaign. Jada Pinkett Smith moved to get the lawsuit tossed, which eventually reaped some reward.

The actor's lawyer is now claiming that the lawsuit from the violinist is just a desperate attempt to get cash from his client. Smith's team emphasized that Joseph had admitted to not knowing who the mystery "Stone F" in his letter is.

Despite his ignorance, he still went ahead to file the lawsuit with explosive claims against the actor and his company, Treyball Studios. Smith's attorney further poked holes into Joseph's claims that he was invited to join the tour; meanwhile, he was hired only on a per-show basis and was never promised any position in the band.

The lawyer added that Joseph and Smith were never alone together, and it remained unclear what he meant by the musician grooming him. The actor's team is now hoping the judge will grant their motion to strike and has also indicated their willingness to provide witnesses who will clarify Joseph's standing in the group.

As reported by TMZ, the attorney affirmed that Joseph acted erratically on tour and proved difficult to work with while making other members of the band feel very uncomfortable.

Joseph has explained in his filing that he was hired to perform at Smith's concert in December 2024 in San Diego, before he joined the full tour. He also joined the movie star to work on his "Based on A True Story" album, and things ultimately transitioned to more than just a working relationship.

Joseph noted that they would spend additional time alone together, with Smith telling him they shared a special relationship he does not have with anybody else. As reported by The Blast, he stressed that this closeness set the stage for a worrying action much later, specifically during the first leg of his Vegas tour.

The violinist claimed that upon his return to his hotel room, he discovered his room had been forcefully entered by an unknown entity. He added that the stranger had dropped a handwritten note, informing him that he would be back by 5:30, and signed it "Stone F."

He continued that several questionable items accompanied this note, terrified him, and made him wonder if any strange person would try to enter his room later in the evening.

Joseph hopped on Instagram in December to share an emotional life update, although he kept most of the details to himself. As noted by The Blast, Joseph began in the video that he was hired to perform on a major tour with an important personality in the industry.

He noted that he went from feeling very proud of this achievement to feeling scared for his life after some events went down on tour. Joseph added that he could not go into details about the situation due to the legal nature of the matter. Still, he has since been experiencing retaliatory moves for reporting the misconduct.

"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 okay," Joseph explained, while urging anyone in his shoes to know that they are not alone. Joseph gained recognition in the industry as a top three finalist on "America's Got Talent" in 2018.

The musician's attorney, Allen B. Grodsky, initially reacted to the lawsuit, denying every allegation via a statement. He described Joseph's complaints as "false, baseless, and reckless," adding that the team will explore all legal means to address the claims and pursue the truth.

Joseph had alleged that Smith's close relationship with him was an attempt at grooming and priming him for further sexual exploitation. He noted that upon discovering the letter and other concerning items in his room, he escalated it to the hotel security, contacted a non-emergency police line, and even informed Smith's management team.

Joseph claimed that all these measures were taken to ensure that he remained safe, and not for compensation or to gain any special favors that may stem from reporting the incident.

On February 26, the "Girls Trip" actress made a crucial progress in the lawsuit filed against her by Smith's former pal, Bilaal Salaam, who claimed she threatened to harm him after he walked in on her husband engaging in a sexual act with another actor.

Salaam claimed the actress verbally attacked him during Smith's birthday party in 2021, causing him distress and requesting for $3 million in damages. 

Jada responded in her latest lawsuit that the court dismissed Salaam's claims as they were in conflict with "California's anti-SLAPP statute," which "provides a procedure for weeding out, at an early stage, meritless claims arising from protected activity."

Her filing asserted that Salaam went about granting media interviews with unverified claims that he saw Smith getting intimate, further fueling the public campaign of harassment against Smith and his family at the time.

Is Will Smith's case about to turn out like Jada Pinkett Smith's?