Will Smith could be pulled into the ongoing legal battle between his former friend Bilaal Salaam and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Salaam, who has described himself as a close friend of the Oscar-winning actor for nearly 40 years, is attempting to force Smith to sit for a deposition in the lawsuit he filed against Jada.
According to legal documents obtained, Salaam sent an email to Jada’s lawyer on July 7 requesting to depose Will. Jada’s team swiftly rejected the request, arguing that Smith is not a party to the litigation and has not received a subpoena to be deposed.
Salaam filed a $3 million emotional distress lawsuit against Jada in late 2025. He claims she confronted him at Will Smith’s birthday party in September 2021, allegedly telling him he would “end up missing or catch a bullet” if he continued discussing her private business. Salaam also alleges that tensions escalated after he refused to help manage the PR fallout from Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap of Chris Rock in 2022.
The situation worsened, Salaam claims, after Jada learned he was writing a memoir that would include mentions of the Smith family. He says third parties threatened him as a result.
Jada has consistently denied all allegations of wrongdoing, dismissing them as “nonsense”. A judge has already dismissed key portions of Salaam’s claims and awarded Jada over $32,000 in legal fees. She has also filed a motion seeking to compel Salaam to turn over additional evidence, including medical records supporting his claims of emotional distress.
Jada’s legal team argues that she has already been deposed in a separate legal matter involving Salaam and that any additional questioning should be limited to one hour. Despite these setbacks, Salaam continues to push forward, insisting that Will’s testimony is essential to proving his remaining claims. A judge has yet to rule on the deposition request.
