The scandal dates back to 2017, when an anonymous person allegedly told Hart’s then-pregnant wife, Eniko Parrish, that they had a sex tape of Hart and model Montia Sabbag. Hart apologised over the matter in an Instagram video, saying he made a “bad error in judgment” and that he would “not allow a person to have a financial gain off of my mistakes”. An Instagram account then asked Hart for US$5 million so they wouldn’t release the sex tape, according to a report from Rolling Stone.
Sabbag denied playing a role in the extortion plot.
Jackson was arrested in 2018 over accusations of trying to extort Hart over the sex tape, according to the lawsuit. Hart said at the time he was “hurt” and “lost for words and simply in complete disbelief at the moment” over the arrest.
But the charges against Jackson were later dropped, according to the lawsuit, and Jackson has since denied the allegations.
In December 2019, Hart, under his company Hartbeat, released a Netflix docuseries that accused Jackson of extortion and involvement in the sex tape’s creation, the lawsuit says.
Nearly two years later in July 2021, Jackson and Hart agreed on a settlement that would require Hart to share a statement that exonerated Jackson and cleared his name, per the suit. Hart was meant to say “all charges against JT Jackson have been dropped and he is not guilty and had nothing to do with it” as a way to help revive Jackson’s career, according to the lawsuit.
However, the complaint says, Hart “willfully deviated” from the agreed-upon language. In his statement, shared on Instagram in October 2021, Hart said that charges against Jackson were dropped, but he did not use the previously agreed-upon wordage, the lawsuit says.
“I can say I’m happy that that chapter of my life is over,” Hart said in his apology at the time. “I’m happy that we were able to put a period on that sentence, and I’m excited to get back to life as we once knew it. I want to get back to life as I once knew it and put that behind me, and move on.”
The lawsuit says Hart’s statement caused “significant harm and irreparable damage” to Jackson’s career “by framing the exoneration more as a conclusion to a chapter in Hart’s own life rather than a clear and unequivocal exoneration” of Jackson.
“Despite the eventual dismissal of these charges, the harm inflicted upon plaintiff’s reputation and career was profound,” the lawsuit says. “The public dissemination of accusations, fuelled by Hart and amplified by the media, along with a concerted smear campaign, cast a long shadow over plaintiff’s professional standing and personal life.”
Jackson is seeking more than US$12 million ($19.6m) in damages for fraud and intentional emotional distress.
The fallout from the sex tape scandal was widespread and has continued to follow both Jackson and Hart, who has briefly alluded to the scandal since it happened. Sabbag, the model, filed a lawsuit in 2020 against Hart and Jackson, claiming they worked together to create and share the sex tape to promote Hart’s Irresponsible Tour, Rolling Stone reported. The case was later dismissed.
