While Shia LaBeouf was partying on the streets of New Orleans last month and speaking at length about his relationship with FKA Twigs, he secretly tried to extort an “exorbitant” sum of money from his ex-girlfriend for allegedly violating the terms of an “unlawful” NDA tied to their 2025 settlement. This emerges from a lawsuit filed by FKA Twigs on Wednesday.
In court documents filed in the Superior Court of Los Angeles and viewed by ROLLING STONE, the Grammy-winning singer, born Tahliah Barnett, alleges that LaBeouf filed a “secret arbitration claim” in December over an interview she gave to The Hollywood Reporter in October. In doing so, he continued his pattern of “controlling” them for “almost a decade.”
At the time of the interview, the “Eusexua” singer had just settled her 2020 lawsuit against LaBeouf, whom she accused of sexual assault, assault and psychological abuse during their year-long relationship between 2018 and 2019. When asked if she felt “safe” after the experience, Barnett answered openly.
The interview as a trigger
“No, I wouldn’t say I feel safe,” Barnett said. “I’m very passionate about getting involved with organizations like Sistah Space and No More to support survivors in any way possible. I think it’s less about me at this point and more about looking forward. Just, well, moving on with my life.”
This “laudable, general and innocuous” statement, the lawsuit alleges, was then used by LaBeouf and his lawyers to “demand exorbitant sums from her for allegedly violating the (unlawful) NDA provisions of the settlement.”
A lawyer for LaBeouf did not immediately respond to ROLLING STONE’s request for comment.
Barnett’s lawyer attacks
In court documents, Barnett’s attorney Mathew Rosengart – who represented Britney Spears in her conservatorship battle – argues that LaBeouf is blatantly trying to silence Barnett, in direct violation of the California STAND Act (Stand Together Against Non-Disclosure Act), which prohibits NDAs in settlements of sexual assault and harassment cases.
“This case is about justice and law, not about money,” Rosengart writes in the 22-page lawsuit. “[Sie] has nothing to gain from this process, either professionally or financially. She is filing this lawsuit to right a wrong – and also on behalf of other women who are victims of sexual and domestic violence and do not have the means to speak out and defend themselves against perpetrators. “This is to ensure that survivors of sexual misconduct are not, like herself, intimidated or silenced by agreements that violate California law and public policy.”
The lawsuit argues that LaBeouf’s arbitration claim is legally baseless for three reasons: Barnett’s vague statement, which does not even mention LaBeouf, would not violate any term even if the NDA were enforceable; the NDA is fundamentally unlawful; and because of LaBeouf’s own conduct, he could not claim any demonstrable “damages” from any NDA violation.
Absurd clauses in comparison
Beyond the NDA’s fundamental alleged illegality, Rosengart highlights the “absurdity” and “impracticality” of some of its provisions, which, according to the lawsuit, attempt to “limit the manner in which Ms. Barnett can donate to charities related to domestic and/or sexual violence or abuse.”
“In other words, the settlement is intended not only to silence Ms. Barnett about her own story as a survivor, but also to prevent her from supporting other survivors,” the lawsuit continues.
According to Barnett’s lawsuit, after receiving an initial response on February 4 in which Barnett’s side made these arguments, LaBeouf’s attorneys claimed that LaBeouf was “not covered by the STAND Act because he was allegedly sued by Ms. Barnett in 2020 only for sexual ‘battery’, not sexual ‘assault’, and the STAND Act does not cover him as a perpetrator of sexual assault.”
Arrested in the middle of a fight
Additionally, the lawsuit notes that LaBeouf was arrested in New Orleans on assault charges — for allegedly punching two bar patrons — while his lawyers were still aggressively pursuing their case and seeking damages from Barnett. He was released on bail the next day and was seen again on the streets celebrating Mardi Gras a few hours later.
Later that month, LaBeouf appeared in a YouTube interview in which he told the host, unsolicited and voluntarily, about his relationship with Barnett – “thereby materially violating the very confidentiality provisions which he had just asserted were fully enforceable against Ms. Barnett,” according to the lawsuit.
Barnett’s lawsuit alleges that the singer felt she had no choice but to take legal action against LaBeouf: While he agreed to drop his own arbitration claim earlier this month, he “continued to refuse to acknowledge that the NDA provisions are illegal and unenforceable.”
Barnett’s demands
The singer is seeking a declaratory order from a judge declaring the NDA tied to her settlement “unlawful, invalid and unenforceable,” as well as reimbursement of attorney’s fees for the lawsuit.
“If Ms. Barnett – a successful artist and cultural icon – can be silenced and intimidated for years, then any woman who has been a victim of sexual abuse can also be silenced – especially those with fewer resources or access to the system,” the lawsuit says. “This lawsuit will determine whether a prominent perpetrator’s fame and money can undermine the important rights the legislature created.”
