Entertainment
FKA Twigs Sues Shia LaBeouf Over Secret NDA in Sexual Abuse Settlement: ‘Campaign of Intimidation’
FKA Twigs is reigniting her legal battle with Shia LaBeouf, claiming the actor is trying to silence her by enforcing a non-disclosure agreement that she says is illegal.
Her new accusations come less than a year after the Grammy-winning singer (Tahliah Barnett) and LaBeouf reached a settlement to resolve her long-running sexual battery lawsuit, in which she accused him of “relentless abuse” while they dated in the late 2010s.
According to a new lawsuit submitted in court Wednesday (March 25), that settlement included an NDA — and in December, LaBeouf filed an arbitration case claiming the singer had violated it by giving press statements that she did not “feel safe” and wanted to “help survivors.”
Represented by prominent litigator Mathew Rosengart, Barnett’s new lawsuit claims that NDA is illegal under California state law and that LaBeouf’s efforts to enforce it are “frivolous” and “preposterous.”
“Shia LaBeouf has tried to control Tahliah Barnett for the better part of a decade,” Rosengart writes in the lawsuit, reviewed on the court’s website by Billboard. “LaBeouf’s campaign of intimidation and abuse of the legal system denigrates not just Ms. Barnett but every other survivor of sexual abuse in this state.”
An attorney for LaBeouf did not immediately return a request for comment.
The new case comes shortly after LaBeouf was arrested twice in New Orleans last month over alleged violent altercations; the star was charged with several misdemeanor counts and released on bond.
Barnett’s lawsuit is premised on the STAND Act, a 2019 California statute passed in the wake of the #MeToo movement that banned the use of non-disclosure agreements to cover up sexual assault, discrimination and sexual harassment cases.
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Her lawyers say the deal she signed with LaBeouf last year clearly violates that law, since it not only prohibits her from discussing her own allegations of sexual abuse against LaBeouf, but also from even discussing the issue of abuse in a general sense.
“She files this action to right a wrong, and also on behalf of other women [who] are the victims of sexual and domestic violence who do not have the resources to speak out and defend themselves from predators,” Rosengart writes. “She seeks to ensure that survivors … are not bullied or silenced like she was by agreements that violate California law.”
LaBeouf’s alleged efforts to enforce the contract started after Barnett gave a statement to The Hollywood Reporter in October, in response to being asked if she felt safe after settling with LaBeouf. “No, I wouldn’t say I feel safe,” she said, before adding that she supports abuse victim advocacy groups and wants to “help survivors in any way that I can.”
After giving that “benign and unoffensive statement,” Barnett says, LaBeouf’s lawyers then filed a “secret arbitration” case against her in December, alleging that she had violated the NDA. The arbitration case, filed by prominent celebrity litigator Shawn Holley, allegedly demanded “exorbitant monies” from the singer for the supposed breach.
Barnett then retained Rosengart — a former federal prosecutor known as an aggressive advocate — who argued the case was void under the STAND Act. LaBeouf’s lawyers allegedly responded by arguing that law did not apply because her abuse case against the actor had alleged only battery, not assault.
“LaBeouf’s preposterous argument should offend every citizen of California,” Barnett’s lawyers write in this week’s lawsuit.
Following more back-and-forth between the lawyers — and after LaBeouf’s criminal troubles in Louisiana — the actor allegedly agreed to drop the arbitration case earlier this month. But Barnett and Rosengart say they need a judge to declare the NDA void so that LaBeouf cannot wield it over the singer in the future.
“Ms. Barnett must be freed from the above-referenced unlawful restrictions,” Rosengart writes. “This lawsuit will determine whether a celebrity abuser’s fame and money can override the important rights enacted by the legislature.”
After returning from their four-year hiatus, BTS is making sure that ARMY is being fed. The K-pop superstars dropped a new music video for a second ARIRANG song in only two weeks on Wednesday (April 1), and they’re drawing inspiration from a classic film for the “2.0” visual.
The cinematic music video is inspired by South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook’s 2003 film Oldboy. The visual begins with the septet, dressed in sharp suits and leather jackets, exiting an elevator and encountering a group of thugs in a dark, grungy corridor. Rather than fighting with a hammer like the protagonist in the film, BTS’ RM, Jung Kook, V, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin and Jin employ their epic dance skills and music to ward off their opponents.
The video then transitions to a different dark hallway where the band continues its choreographed number, this time without the presence of the thugs. From the corridors, the septet ends up in a dirty bathroom where they dance in front of the mirrors and sing the chorus.
Then, to make it a true “2.0” moment, the K-pop stars return to the elevator from whence they came and quickly change into new, modern outfits — calling back to the song’s lyrics, “We on that brand new” — and close out the video in a high-rise building setting.
The band first teased the new video on Tuesday (March 31) with a 30-second preview. The latest visual comes just days after the album and lead single “SWIM” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and Billboard Hot 100, respectively.
Watch the “2.0” music video above.
Entertainment
Taemin Feels ‘So Honored & Grateful’ to Be the First Male K-Pop Solo Artist to Perform at Coachella
Taemin is making history a long way from home. SHINee member and K-pop star appeared on the Wednesday (April 1) episode of The Jennifer Hudson Show, where he spoke about being part of this year’s Coachella lineup.
“You’re making history as the first K-pop male solo artist to perform at Coachella,” Hudson points out during their chat. “How does that feel?”
“There is a saying in Korea, ‘Big opportunities come three times in life,'” Taemin responds after sharing that he was feeling “honored and grateful” to be performing at the festival. “And this is one of them.”
Hudson continues the chat by asking the star if he will release more solo music.
“Oh, yes,” Taemin replies. “I am still evolving.”
The star was also on the talk show to perform his new single, “Long Way Home.” The “Idol’s Idol” sang alone on the stage, dancing effortlessly with his rhinestone microphone and mic stand for the adoring audience.
Performing at Coachella isn’t the only history Taemin is making this year. Billboard exclusively revealed in March that the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles will open a new exhibit dedicated to the K-pop star’s nearly two-decade long career, making him the first K-pop soloist to receive such recognition from the museum. “TAEMIN: Performer. Artist. Icon” will opens April 1 and will give fans a peek behind the curtains of Taemin’s career. Multiple performance looks — including one from his Ephemeral Gaze World Tour — will be on display as well as his official lightstick and a handwritten note addressed to his fans. The special exhibit will run through May 25.
Watch Taemin’s performance and chat on The Jennifer Hudson Show above.
KATSEYE is taking EYEKONS to etiquette classes, and the first rule we’re learning? Pinkies up.
The HYBE K-pop girl group announced new single “Pinky Up” via a series of social media posts. The first arrived Monday (March 30). It was a cryptic video featuring the Mona Lisa bringing a piping hot cup of tea up to her mouth — pinky up, of course. The next came Tuesday morning (March 31), this time featuring an arcade claw machine with “KATSEYE” emblazoned across the top as the claw pulls out a sword from the midst of blinged out stuffed animals and a singular tea cup. What may be a hint to some of the song’s lyrics, the caption for the reel says, “We’re screaming from cloud nine!!”
The third post confirmed the arriving single and its artwork, featuring someone kneeling on a carpet behind with a tea cup on a saucer and a toy cat, and the title of the song across the front in hot pink lettering. The caption reads “PINKY UP SINGLE RELEASE” as well as the release date and time, April 9 at 9 a.m. PT/12 p.m. ET.
“Pinky Up” comes out just in time for KATSEYE’s Coachella debut on Friday (April 10). The single will also be the band’s first new work since record labels HYBE and Geffen announced last month that member Manon Bannerman would be taking a break from the group. Since Manon has stepped back, KATSEYE has continued their previously scheduled appearances, including performances at Lollapalooza Argentina and Lollapalooza Chile. On March 24, the band was announced as the headliner for the 2026 Head in the Clouds Music & Arts Festival, to take place on Aug. 8 in Passadena, Calif.
See KATSEYE’s posts about “Pinky Up” below:
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