Kevin Hart is being sued for allegedly scuttling a settlement aimed at clearing the name of former friend Jonathan “JT” Jackson in connection with the events surrounding the comics sex tape cheating scandal.
In a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Jackson accuses the “Get Hard” actor of not using the “carefully negotiated” and agreed-upon language of the 2021 settlement when addressing the scandal in an Instagram post that same year, resulting in 1,200 million dollar breach of contract lawsuit. The civil lawsuit names Hart, Hartbeat LLC and several Does as defendants, also accusing them of fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The 23-page complaint, obtained by The Times on Wednesday, alleges that Hart was obligated under the July 2021 settlement to use “certain wording” to “publicly absolve” the Navy veteran, Pro Bowler and actor responsibility for his role in the aftermath of the scandal
“The wording of Hart’s statement was carefully negotiated and detailed in the contract, and is absolutely critical to repairing and redressing the serious damage to Plaintiffs’ reputations caused by the baseless racketeering claims that Hart aggressively promoted and publicized,” the complaint reads. important.
Jackson, 47, was the target of a raid on his home in January 2018, when he and his wife were held at gunpoint by investigators from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, who were looking into racketeering charges, which he believed This was initiated by Hart. The charges were eventually dropped by prosecutors (who Jackson also sued in December), but Jackson claimed that “due to a series of malicious actions by the defendants, including the release of Hart and Hartbit’s 2019 Netflix documentary “The Don,” his The reputation has been unfairly harmed.” Not F—— this. ”
The documentary series alludes to racketeering and claims Jackson was involved in the production and distribution of a sex tape that showed Hart having an intimate act with a woman who was not his wife in a Las Vegas hotel room. (Jackson and Hart were also sued for $60 million by model Montia Sabbag, who allegedly appeared in the tape with Hart, but the lawsuit was eventually dismissed and Jackson also Cleared of all charges.
According to the new lawsuit, Jackson received no money from the settlement with Hart because he believed their contract was “not about seeking compensation but a means to an end” that would clear Jackson’s name. Hart’s public statements included agreed-upon language that was critical to Jackson’s acquittal, and that Jackson entered into the contract “with the expectation of ultimately restoring his reputation and allowing Plaintiff to resume his professional life in good faith,” according to the complaint. ”.
Jackson claimed that Hart expressly agreed in a written settlement to “pursue and advocate for the dismissal” of all criminal charges against Jackson and to make public statements certifying his innocence. He said Hart was asked to show that criminal charges against Jackson had been dismissed, that Jackson was completely cleared of any involvement in the blackmail plot, and that the legal failure cost Hart a “valuable friendship.”
The indictment further states that Hart should have said that he “lost a man who was very close to me, whom I loved and who I still love very much or highly, and I am proud to say that all of the allegations against J.T. Jackson have been proven.” .
Instead, Hart’s Instagram video posted on October 27, 2021, “blatantly violated” their agreement and “manipulated[d] narrative,” the complaint states. Hart ultimately said, “JT Jackson was recently acquitted and the charges against him were dropped, and I can finally talk about things that I once couldn’t.” The comedian also said that their friendship “has been damaged due to the legal process.” Gone,” noting that he was relieved that the legal saga was over. He did not mention that Jackson “had nothing to do with this.”
“Hart’s statement deviated significantly from the agreed-upon wording in several key respects,” Jackson’s attorney, Daniel L. Reback, argued in the complaint. “First, the wording of Hart’s rule explicitly required him to declare ‘against [Jackson] He has been removed from office and is not guilty of any wrongdoing. However, Hart’s actual statement lacked an explicit statement of the accuser’s innocence or non-involvement. Additionally, Hart’s agreed-upon statement was an acknowledgment of the serious impact the incident had on the loss of valuable friendships due to legal issues, but Hart’s actual statement was entirely focused on Hart himself “moving on” and did not directly acknowledge the significant personal and professional impact Plaintiff’s fees as outlined in the contract.
In addition to $12 million, Jackson is seeking punitive damages to be determined at trial, legal fees and costs and an injunction requiring the defendants to be acquitted and to expunge “all false statements” about him in “Don’t F.” –this.
Ryback added in a statement to The Times: “The facts in the complaint speak for themselves. We are confident that this lawsuit will end with a resounding victory and vindication for Mr. Jackson.”
A spokesman for Hart could not be reached Wednesday to respond to a request for comment from The New York Times.
Hart has spoken out several times over the years about the sex tape saga and apologized to his wife, Eniko Parrish, who was in Las Vegas when the tape was allegedly taped. Pregnant with their first child. Hart apologized to Parrish in a September 2017 Instagram video following reports that an unidentified woman allegedly tried to blackmail him into filming a video containing sexually suggestive content.
“I have to do better and I will. I’m not perfect and I never claim to be,” he wrote in the video’s caption. Months later, he admitted to the infidelity, telling The Breakfast Club in December 2017 that his behavior was “extremely irresponsible.”
“That was Kevin Hart’s dumbest moment. That was not the best moment of my life,” he said. “That being said, you make your bed and lie down on it. You can’t tell what you’re thinking because you’re not thinking.
Times staff writer Alexandra del Rosario contributed Report.
