When Vince McMahon founded WWE, a former employee sued him, claiming he mistreated and sexually exploited her while serving as CEO of the wrestling entertainment company.
It is alleged that McMahon used her as a pawn to obtain talent deals with potential wrestlers the company was hiring.
The Trafficking Victims Prevention Act was allegedly broken by McMahon, Laurinaitis, and WWE, according to the lawsuit. Additionally, Grant claims she was subjected to years of sexual and emotional abuse while working for WWE, which includes allegations of civil battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
A request for comment was not immediately answered by representatives for McMahon or WWE.
Two days after WWE and UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings signed a 10-year, $500 million-a-year deal with Netflix for WWE’s “Monday Night Raw,” the lawsuit was filed. This was a significant increase in fees for the franchise.
An inquiry about the lawsuit was not immediately answered by representatives for Endeavor, TKO, or Netflix.
In June 2022, McMahon announced his resignation as CEO of WWE, following a board investigation into claims he had paid women hush money to cover up his alleged sexual misconduct.
The company revealed that McMahon, in his capacity as CEO of WWE, paid out a total of $19.6 million for alleged misconduct beginning in 2007.
McMahon reimbursed WWE $17.4 million in March 2023 for the expenses the organization incurred in looking into claims of misbehavior against him.
The lawsuit complaint claims that McMahon “would threaten Ms. Grant’s livelihood and reputation if she didn’t give in to his increasingly perverted sexual demands, while also showering her with presents and phony professional promotions.
includes sharing Ms. Grant’s pornography with “thousands” of people and having sex acts with other WWE staff members, some of whom were total strangers.
The lawsuit claims that Grant “was unexpectedly persuaded to resign from the WWE and made to sign an NDA days before a crucial financial deadline for the corporation under the premise of confidentiality” after McMahon’s wife found out about his relationship with Grant.
But later on, Mr. McMahon declined to pay Ms. Grant, allegedly on the grounds that she had given material to the media, as per the lawsuit.
In February 2022, McMahon sent Grant $1 million, but the complaint claims that McMahon “failed to make any more payments.”
Grant’s claim states that she met McMahon in March 2019 while residing in the same apartment complex.
In June of that year, according to the lawsuit, “Ms. Grant was placed in an entry-level role as an ‘administrator-coordinator’ after giving in to pressure for a sexual connection.”
McMahon and Laurinaitis sexually assaulted Ms. Grant at WWE’s Stamford, Conn., headquarters in June 2021, according to the allegations against McMahon and Laurinaitis.