R&B singer Chris Brown has launched a $500 million lawsuit against Warner Bros. Discovery and Ample Entertainment, claiming their recent documentary falsely portrayed him as a sexual abuser. The legal action, filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, targets the October 2023 documentary “Chris Brown: A History of Violence.”
Brown’s legal team claims the producers ignored key evidence that would have disproven several allegations featured in the film. They argue the documentary makers chose sensationalism over truth “in their pursuit of likes, clicks, downloads and dollars.”
A major focus of the lawsuit involves allegations from an unnamed woman, known as Jane Doe, who had previously accused Brown of drugging and sexually assaulting her at a yacht party in 2020. According to the lawsuit, these claims were proven false, and the woman’s original civil case was dismissed after her lawyers quit.
“Mr. Brown has never been found guilty of any sex-related crime,” the legal complaint states. The lawsuit argues that despite this fact, the documentary portrays Brown as “a serial rapist and sexual abuser.”
Brown’s attorney, Levi McCathern, emphasized the lawsuit’s purpose in a statement: “This case is about protecting the truth. The producers intentionally promoted false information while ignoring evidence that proved them wrong.”
The lawsuit points out that the documentary’s makers dismissed evidence about Jane Doe’s background, including a 2021 restraining order against her. Court documents show her former boyfriend filed this order after she allegedly attacked him and made threats.
While the lawsuit acknowledges Brown’s past issues, including his 2009 guilty plea for assaulting singer Rihanna, it maintains that he has changed and grown from these experiences. His legal team argues the documentary has severely damaged his rebuilt career and reputation.
In an unexpected move, Brown announced he would give some of any money won from the lawsuit to organizations helping sexual abuse survivors. The media companies named in the lawsuit have not yet commented on these claims.
This legal battle comes as Brown faces other challenges, including a separate lawsuit from last summer. That case involves claims that Brown and his team attacked four people backstage at a concert in Fort Worth, Texas.
Warner Bros. Discovery and Ample Entertainment representatives had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.
