FKA twigs has filed a new lawsuit against Shia LaBeouf, claiming the actor is attempting to prohibit her from publicly discussing the alleged sexual abuse she experienced during their relationship or any additional issues related to sexual violence.
In 2020, twigs (real name Tahliah Barnett) sued the actor, accusing him of months of “physical, sexual, and mental abuse.” After years of delays, the jury trial was set to start in September 2025, but the two reached a settlement before it began. According to Mathew Rosengart, a lawyer for the singer-songwriter, this was done to allow “LaBeouf to avoid a public and embarrassing jury trial and potentially enormous damages for his conduct.”
Within this agreement, Rosengart now claims, was an “unlawful NDA,” which was included to prevent “Ms. Barnett not just from disclosing information about her own survival of sexual assault and sexual abuse but…from discussing sexual assault and sexual abuse more generally and as an important topic of public concern.” Rosengart adds that the NDA is in violation of California’s STAND Act, which forbids agreements that are meant to silence sexual assault survivors from speaking out.
Pitchfork has reached out to LaBeouf’s representatives for comment.
Barnett’s current complaint stems from an arbitration demand she received from LaBeouf in December 2025, which claimed a breach of contract of their initial settlement after she mentioned in an interview with the The Hollywood Reporter that, following their relationship, she didn’t “feel safe.” Although the arbitration was ultimately dismissed, Barnett now seeks judicial remedy, acknowledging that the NDA’s provisions are part of LaBeouf’s “continuing efforts to silence” her “as a sexual abuse survivor.” She does not seek financial compensation.
“Ms. Barnett…s nothing to gain from this case either professionally or financially,” Rosengart adds in the complaint. “She files this action to right a wrong, and also on behalf of other women who are the victims of sexual and domestic violence who do not have the resources to speak out and defend themselves from predators.”
