Bilaal Salaam says he has known Will Smith for almost four decades, and he points to the actor’s own memoir and public comments from D. L. Hughley as proof of that connection. Now he’s putting that history front and center in a lawsuit that lays out a long list of accusations involving Jada Pinkett Smith, several associates, and even pressure tied to the fallout from the 2022 Oscars.
According to the filing, everything reportedly started in September 2021 during Will Smith’s fifty third birthday celebration. Salaam says he was in the hotel lobby in Calabasas when Pinkett Smith approached him with seven others. He claims she became verbally aggressive and demanded he sign an NDA on the spot. Salaam says one of her associates didn’t let it end there and followed him all the way to his car while continuing the threats.
He says what happened that day sent his life into a tailspin. The suit describes what he calls severe emotional and physical fallout, including PTSD, hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, major weight gain, and even the end of a long-term relationship. According to him, the stress pushed him into two years of self-imposed isolation.
He also says his luxury jewelry brand, Bopulent, collapsed during this period, and that a memoir he had been preparing, which he says came with a reported five hundred thousand-dollar advance, was put on hold indefinitely.
Salaam claims things escalated again after the 2022 Oscars. This was the same night Will Smith slapped Chris Rock onstage, which dominated headlines around the world. According to the lawsuit, actor Duane Martin contacted Salaam afterward and pushed him to help with what Martin allegedly described as damage control. Salaam says Martin warned him that refusing would lead to repercussions from Pinkett Smith. He also says three other associates threatened him during this time.
The lawsuit goes even further, accusing Pinkett Smith of trying to discredit him publicly. He says she denied ever seeing Will Smith engage in intimate behavior with men, even though Salaam released a video that he says contradicts her. According to the filing, her comments led to widespread ridicule, damaged his reputation, and sparked accusations that he was trying to extort the Smith family.
Salaam says he is not done. Along with the claims already filed, he plans to bring additional legal action directly against Will Smith.
The suit lays out a sweeping timeline of personal, emotional, and financial fallout. Salaam says everything traces back to the 2021 confrontation and the threats he claims continued afterward. With more filings promised, this legal fight may grow even bigger.
