British musician FKA Twigs has filed a new lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend Shia LaBeouf, alleging that he used an “unlawful” non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in an attempt to silence her.
The legal dispute follows allegations made in 2020 by FKA Twigs, whose legal name is Tahliah Barnett, who accused LaBeouf of assault, sexual battery and infliction of emotional distress. She dismissed her case in July 2025 against the 39-year-old actor.
In a legal complaint filed Wednesday, Barnett, 38, alleges that LaBeouf attempted to silence her through a settlement document that violated California’s Stand Together Against Non-Disclosure (STAND) Act, which prohibits confidentiality clauses in settlements involving sexual assault, sexual harassment or related forms of sexual discrimination.
In the lawsuit, obtained by Variety, NBC News and Rolling Stone, Barnett’s lawyers allege that following the 2020 case, LaBeouf “extracted a settlement” that included terms deemed “unlawful” under the STAND Act.
The suit further alleges that in 2025, LaBeouf filed a “secret arbitration complaint” seeking an “exorbitant” sum of money for an alleged breach of the 2020 settlement.
LaBeouf alleged that Barnett violated the NDA in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, when she was asked if she felt a “sense of safety with the chapter behind her” after dismissing the case.
“No, I wouldn’t say I feel safe,” she responded. “I feel really passionate about being involved with organizations such as Sistah Space and No More, to help survivors in any way that I can. I think it’s less about me at this point and more about looking forward. Just, you know, moving on with my life.”
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The suit adds that “even if the NDA provisions at issue were legal,” Barnett’s statements in the October 2025 interview were “laudable, generic and benign.”
“LaBeouf’s campaign of intimidation and abuse of the legal system denigrates not just Ms. Barnett but every survivor of sexual abuse in this State,” the suit reads.
“As the California Legislature has made clear, survivors should have the right to tell their stories without fear or coercion, and California law does not and must not allow abusers and bullies to silence them through secret agreements containing unconscionable, unlawful gag orders.
“In other words, the settlement seeks not only to silence Ms. Barnett about her own story as a survivor but also to silence her from supporting other survivors as well.”
Lawyers for Barnett claim that she was “forced” to file the new motion as a way to combat LaBeouf’s “erroneous, preposterous legal position: that he is somehow not covered by the STAND Act because he was supposedly sued by Ms. Barnett in 2020 only for sexual ‘battery,’ not sexual ‘assault’ and the STAND Act does not cover him as a sexual batterer even though, as matter of both common sense and law, the STAND Act covers both.”
Barnett is seeking declaratory relief from a judge and lawyer fees related to the case.
“If Ms. Barnett — a successful artist and cultural icon — can be silenced and intimidated for years, then every woman who has been the victim of sexual abuse can also be silenced, especially those with less resources or access to the system,” the complaint states.
“This lawsuit will determine whether a celebrity abuser’s fame and money can override the important rights enacted by the Legislature.”
Matthew Rosengart, a lawyer for Barnett, said his client “refuses to be bullied anymore.”
“This action was taken in response to Mr. LaBeouf’s attempt to bully and intimidate twigs through a frivolous and unlawful secret arbitration he filed against her in December in which he sought to extract money from her,” Rosengart said in a statement to NBC News.
Last July, LaBeouf and Barnett released a joint statement issued by their lawyers after the 2020 case was dismissed.
“Committed to forging a constructive path forward, we have agreed to settle our case out of court,” LaBeouf and Barnett said. “While the details of the settlement will remain private, we wish each other personal happiness, professional success and peace in the future.”
The two met and became a couple in 2018 after Barnett was cast in a supporting role in Honey Boy, an autobiographical film about LaBeouf’s upbringing as a child actor.
Barnett’s new legal filing comes as LaBeouf has been ordered by a New Orleans judge to enroll in drug and alcohol rehabilitation after he was charged with two counts of battery over an alleged assault outside a bar during Mardi Gras.
Orleans Parish Criminal Court Judge Simone Levine ordered LaBeouf to submit to weekly drug tests, including one on the spot in the courthouse, and set a US$100,000 bond. LaBeouf agreed, and his lawyer said the test did not show illegal substances in his system.
The New Orleans Police Department previously said a staff member had attempted to remove LaBeouf from a business but the actor hit one man several times with closed fists. They alleged the Transformers actor was causing a disturbance and becoming increasingly aggressive at a business on Royal Street early on Feb. 17.
LaBeouf posted bond and has not yet formally entered a plea to the charges.
LaBeouf and his representatives have not publicly commented on Barnett’s legal filing as of this writing.
— with files from The Associated Press
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