Violinist on Will Smith’s tour files wrongful termination lawsuit
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The lawsuit also accuses Will Smith (left) of “grooming” Brian King Joseph for sexual activity.
PHOTOS: WILLSMITH/INSTAGRAM, BRIANKINGJOSEPH/INSTAGRAM
Jason M. Bailey
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LOS ANGELES – A violinist who performed on American actor Will Smith’s concert tour in 2025 filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Smith and his production company on Dec 30, 2025.
A lawyer for the musician, Brian King Joseph, said in the court papers that his client was fired in retaliation for reporting in March 2025 that someone had broken into his hotel room and left several items in an act he described as sexual harassment.
According to the lawsuit, Joseph, 35, entered his assigned Las Vegas hotel room while on tour and found a handwritten note to “Brian”, along with a backpack, a beer bottle, wipes and a bottle of HIV medication.
The lawsuit says that Joseph, after encountering the note, “feared that an unknown individual would soon return to his room to engage in sexual acts” with him. It elsewhere accuses Smith, 57, of “grooming” Joseph for sexual activity.
The lawsuit says the note was signed “Stone F”, but the court papers do not elaborate on who the plaintiff viewed as its author.
Mr Allen Grodsky, a lawyer for Smith, said in a statement that the allegations were “false, baseless and reckless”.
“They are categorically denied,” he said, “and we will use all legal means available to address these claims and to ensure that the truth is brought to light.”
Joseph’s lawsuit asserts he was fired after reporting what he had found, including medical paperwork belonging to someone he did not know, to tour management and hotel security. It says he filed a report with the hotel and that a few days later, Smith’s production company fired him from the Based On A True Story tour.
The lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County says the termination caused “severe emotional distress, economic loss, reputational harm and other damages” for Joseph.
It adds that the violinist, who finished third on a season of America’s Got Talent (2006 to present), auditioned at Smith’s home in November 2024 and was then invited to perform with him in concerts and contribute to an upcoming album.
Smith and Joseph began spending time alone and “their relationship grew even closer”, the lawsuit says, without going into detail. It says Smith once told him: “You and I have such a special connection, that I don’t have with anyone else.”
The lawsuit points to that statement and details of the hotel break-in while asserting that Smith “was deliberately grooming and priming Joseph for further sexual exploitation”, and that there was “a pattern of predatory behaviour”.
It does not describe specific actions by Smith. Joseph’s lawyer Jonathan Delshad did not respond to questions about the lawsuit. Efforts to reach Treyball Studio Management, Smith’s production company, were unsuccessful. NYTIMES
