Vince McMahon, who previously faced an internal investigation into misconduct within WWE, now faces a lawsuit from a former employee who accuses him of sexual abuse and sex trafficking. The suit alleges that McMahon and WWE’s former head of talent relations John Laurinaitis used the ex-employee “both for their own pleasure and as a pawn to secure talent deals with prospective wrestlers they were recruiting” (via Variety). The CEO “repeatedly used sex toys named after other WWE employees, wrestlers and performers to sexually groom Ms. Grant for trafficking to those same people.”
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The plaintiff, Janel Grant, first met McMahon in 2019 when they lived in the same apartment building. “After succumbing to the pressure for a physical relationship, Ms. Grant was slotted into an entry-level position as an ‘administrator-coordinator’—a position McMahon created for her in WWE’s legal department,” the lawsuit states. “[McMahon] would shower Ms. Grant with gifts and empty work promotions, while at the same time threatening her livelihood and her reputation if she wouldn’t succumb to his increasingly depraved sexual demands, including disseminating pornography of Ms. Grant to ‘thousands’ of individuals and engaging in sex acts with other WWE employees — some of whom were complete strangers.”
Grant’s lawsuit alleges truly horrific acts of sexual assault and abuse of power—the full filing is available to read over at Variety—including an instance of McMahon and Laurinaitis raping her while she protested and telling her “‘No means yes’ and ‘Take it, bitch.’”
The accusations elsewhere in the filing are disturbing. “Early in the encounter, McMahon immediately directed Ms. Grant to lay down on her back in a supplicating position,” the lawsuit states, “While straddling over her, McMahon defecated on Ms. Grant’s head. McMahon left to shower off, but he instructed Ms. Grant to remain in place, with excrement in her hair, and to continue performing for his friend. While Ms. Grant requested protection, none was offered. McMahon and Physical Therapist actively continued with the threesome and directed Ms. Grant’s sexual performance for around an hour and a half while she was left covered in feces.”
According to the suit, after McMahon’s wife found out about the arrangement, Grant “was abruptly pressured to resign from the WWE and forced to sign an NDA days before a major financial deadline for the organization under the guise that Mr. McMahon would ‘protect her’ financially and reputationally, and pay her $3 million. However, Mr. McMahon later refused to make payments to Ms. Grant, falsely claiming that she had leaked information to the press.” As part of the suit, Grant seeks to have the nondisclosure agreement declared “void and unenforceable, and does not bar any of Plaintiff’s claims against Defendants McMahon and WWE.”
After the initial misconduct allegation, McMahon “retired” as WWE CEO. However, when WWE merged with UFC, McMahon became the executive chairman of TKO Group Holdings, the newly combined company. Grant’s lawsuit comes just days after news broke that WWE alum Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson would be joining the company’s board, as well as a $500 million deal between TKO and Netflix to host WWE’s Monday Night Raw.
Ann Callis, an attorney for Grant, said in a statement (per Variety), “Today’s complaint seeks to hold accountable two WWE executives who sexually assaulted and trafficked Plaintiff Janel Grant, as well as the organization that facilitated or turned a blind eye to the abuse and then swept it under the rug. She is an incredibly private and courageous person who has suffered deeply at the hands of Mr. McMahon and Mr. Laurinaitis. Ms. Grant hopes that her lawsuit will prevent other women from being victimized. The organization is well aware of Mr. McMahon’s history of depraved behavior, and it’s time that they take responsibility for the misconduct of its leadership.”