Vince McMahon Accused Of Assaulting Ex-Staff With Sex Toys Named After WWE Wrestlers
WWE founder Vince McMahon is being sued by a former employee who alleges he trafficked and sexually abused her with sex toys he named after WWE stars.
Janel Grant, who had received a payout from her former boss, filed a lawsuit in Connecticut federal court Thursday alleging McMahon pressured her into having a physical relationship with him in 2019 and subjected her to acts of "extreme cruelty and degradation" when she worked for the WWE, according to a copy of the complaint published by Variety.
McMahon has since denied the allegations. WWE and John Laurinaitis, the company's former head of talent relations, are also named in the suit, but it is unclear if both have publicly addressed the complaint.
Grant alleged in her complaint that after she was given an entry-level position as a coordinator in the WWE legal department, McMahon made "increasingly depraved sexual demands," including forcing her into "sexual encounters" with himself, Laurinaitis, and other male employees at the company's headquarters.
The suit also claimed that the then-WWE CEO allegedly sexually abused Grant with sex toys named after male WWE wrestlers and performers and defecated on her head during a threesome in May 2020. Grant said she suffered physical injuries from her former boss' alleged "forceful use of sex toys."
The ex-employee also alleged that McMahon sex-trafficked her to other men as a "pawn" to secure deals with wrestling talent, the lawsuit said.
In addition, the complaint accused McMahon of allegedly sharing explicit material of Grant to "thousands" of individuals, including an unnamed "WWE superstar."
Grant alleged that McMahon threatened her livelihood and reputation while simultaneously showering her with gifts and empty work promotions.
The former employee alleged that after his wife learned of their alleged relationship, McMahon pressured her to resign and forced her to sign a non-disclosure agreement, promising to pay her $3 million, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the lawsuit.
But after Grant allegedly received $1 million from McMahon in 2022, she did not get any further payments.
Grant is seeking unspecified monetary damages and a declaratory judgment that the NDA she signed is "void and unenforceable."
In a statement to the Los Angeles Times Thursday, a spokesperson for McMahon claimed Grant's lawsuit was "replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and a vindictive distortion of the truth."
The rep added that McMahon will "vigorously defend" himself against Grant's allegations.
A spokesperson for WWE and UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings also released a statement addressing Grant's lawsuit.
"Mr. McMahon does not control TKO nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE," the statement obtained by Variety read. "While this matter predates our TKO executive team's tenure at the company, we take Ms. Grant's horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally."
McMahon, who stepped down as WWE's CEO in June 2022 amid an investigation into alleged hush-money payments related to sexual misconduct allegations, returned to the company last year as executive chairman.
