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Brian King Joseph accused Will Smith of sexual harassment in a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles just before New Year's Day, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
Joseph, a professional violinist, alleges that Smith “intentionally groomed and groomed Mr. Joseph for further sexual exploitation” in the complaint against the Academy Award-winning actor and his associates at his Treyball Studios Management, Inc.
After his first performance with Smith in December 2024 “Gettin' Jiggy Wit It” the singer allegedly recruited Joseph to join his Based on a True Story: 2025 tour.
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Will Smith was accused of sexual harassment in a lawsuit filed on December 30. (Matt Winkelmeyer)
Joseph said their “relationship became even closer” after Smith asked him to play on several tracks on the rapper's upcoming album.
“Smith and Plaintiff began spending more time alone, with Smith even telling Plaintiff that 'you and I have a special connection that I don't have with anyone else,' and other similar language indicating his closeness to Plaintiff,” the documents state.
Joseph supposedly joined the first leg of the tour in March 2025 at Vegaswhere he was given a hotel room booked by Smith and his team. He claimed that “no one other than… crew and hotel staff would have access” to his private room.
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Violinist participating in the competition “America's Got Talent” in 2018, he claimed that he put the room key in a bag that he left in a van used to transport cast and crew. After rehearsing on stage, management allegedly spent several hours collecting the bag.
Brian King Joseph was a finalist on America's Got Talent in 2018. (Trey Patton)
When Joseph returned to his hotel room that evening, he stated that he “discovered evidence that an unknown person had entered the room unlawfully.” Joseph subsequently called hotel security.
“The evidence included a handwritten note addressed to Plaintiff by name that stated, 'Brian, I will be back at the latest.' [sic] 5:30, just us (heart drawn), Stone F,” the lawsuit says. “Items left behind included tissues, a bottle of beer, a red backpack, a bottle of HIV medication with another person’s name on it, an earring and hospital discharge papers belonging to a person without Plaintiff’s knowledge.”
The documents say Joseph feared an unknown person would return to his room to engage in sexual activity, and he “immediately notified hotel security and Defendant's representatives, obtained photographic documentation, requested a room change, and called the local police non-emergency line (311) to report the incident.”
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A few days later, Joseph claims, Smith's team began “blaming” him for the incident.
“Rather than receive protection from further assault and for attempting to understand Plaintiff’s complaint, Defendant shamed Plaintiff and told him he was being fired,” the complaint states.
Will Smith first rose to fame as a rapper and then starred in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the '90s. (Isa Foltin/WireImage)
“When Plaintiff asked for … additional evidence, Tim Miller, acting on behalf of Defendants, shifted the blame for the termination to Plaintiff by responding, “I don’t know, you tell me, because everyone tells me that what happened to you is a lie, nothing happened, and you made it all up. So tell me, why did you lie and make it up?”
Joseph, at Miller's request, created a timeline “to explain the traumatic series of events that occurred that evening.”
“However, following Plaintiff's application and termination, Defendant hired another violinist to fill the same position during the tour,” the documents state. “This hiring strongly suggests that Defendant’s stated reason for termination was pretextual.”
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“The facts strongly suggest that Defendant Willard Carroll Smith II intentionally groomed and groomed Mr. Joseph for further sexual exploitation. The sequence of events, Smith's previous statements to the plaintiff, and the circumstances of the break-in at the hotel all point to a pattern of predatory behavior rather than an isolated incident,” the lawsuit states.
Brian King Joseph allegedly suffered “severe emotional distress” after the incident. (Max Faulkner)
“Defendant’s actions caused Plaintiff significant emotional distress, economic loss, reputational damage and other harm. The plaintiff was also harmed as a result of the stress of losing his job and his health deteriorated, resulting in serious physiological damage. As a result of his termination, Plaintiff suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues.”
Representatives for Smith did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
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Joseph filed the complaint after ex-partner Bilaal Salaam filed a $3 million lawsuit against Jada Pinkett Smith.
Salam said Jada approached him with physical threats and demanded he sign a non-disclosure agreement during a private meeting at a movie theater in Calabasas for my husband's birthday in September 2021.
