Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith Respond to $3M Complaint Claiming She Threatened a Friend: ‘This is Nonsense’

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith in 2024.
Credit :

FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty

NEED TO KNOW

• Jada Pinkett Smith was sued by one of her husband Will Smith’s former associates for $3 million on Monday, Dec. 1.
• Bilaal Salaam claimed that Pinkett Smith verbally threatened him in 2021 and launched a retaliatory campaign against him in 2023.
• “They are really mad and say it’s a lot of crap,” an insider tells PEOPLE, calling Salaam “an opportunistic person out to exploit” the couple.

Recent developments indicate that Jada Pinkett Smith is facing a $3 million lawsuit filed by her husband Will Smith’s former associate, Bilaal Salaam. Sources close to the couple report that they are upset over the lawsuit.

In his legal complaint, Salaam, also known as Brother Bilaal, claims Pinkett Smith threatened him during a confrontation in the lobby of the Regency Calabasas Commons in September 2021. He alleges she warned him that if he continued divulging her personal matters, he would “end up missing or catch a bullet.”

Reflecting the couple’s sentiments, an entertainment source stated, “They are really mad and say it’s a lot of crap,” describing Salaam as “an opportunistic person out to exploit them.” The couple reportedly views the lawsuit as a tactic to extract money from them, expressing concern about people in their circle discussing personal matters publicly.

Will Smith; Jada Pinkett Smith.

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images; Santiago Felipe/Getty Images

According to the complaint, Salaam asserts that Pinkett Smith “demanded” he sign a nondisclosure agreement or face consequences. He claims she followed him to his car while issuing further threats, leading to a series of alleged threats from Smith and Pinkett Smith’s associates. The suit also cites a “retaliatory campaign” that intensified after Salaam gave a controversial interview in 2023.

In that interview, Salaam reportedly claimed to have witnessed an intimate act involving Will Smith and actor Duane Martin. Pinkett Smith dismissed this allegation as “nonsense” in a subsequent interview.

Salaam is suing for intentional infliction of emotional distress, referencing Pinkett Smith’s comments that he was attempting to “shake down” her and her husband during an interview.

Representatives for both Pinkett Smith and Smith have been contacted for comments regarding the lawsuit.

Another source elaborated on the couple’s long-standing relationship with Salaam, asserting that he had been close to Will Smith for many years but became overly talkative, causing discontent for both Will and Jada. “Like any other high-profile people, they don’t want to hear about their lives in the public arena. Especially in a controversial way,” the source noted.

Further suggesting the lawsuit is motivated by monetary gain, the source added that Salaam’s claim “was tailored to produce some money to make it go away.”

Jada Pinkett Smith at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy on Nov. 15.

Leon Bennett/Getty

Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith were married in 1997. In 2023, Pinkett Smith revealed that the couple has been separated for seven years. They share two children: son Jaden, 27, and daughter Willow, 25, along with Will’s son Trey, 33, from his previous marriage.