Kevin Hart was hit with a hefty lawsuit after a failed partnership with Stand Up Digital who claims the comedian's scandal tarnished the release of their app. They are asking for $7.2 million in damages. According to reports, Hart is now leveraging that same scandal to fire back at the company.
Hart is said to have filed court documents stating that he “suffered through an extremely difficult period in his life, where he was subjected to attempted blackmail to prevent disclosure of an extramarital affair.”
“Instead of giving in to his would-be blackmailer, Mr. Hart took the extraordinary step of admitting his mistake publicly, apologizing to his loved ones who were no doubt hurt by this revelation, and promising to 'do better' in the future. Whereas many persons go through the exact same marital strife, Mr. Hart and his family were forced to endure it publicly, all because an extortionist sought to take advantage of Mr. Hart’s fame for his own financial advantage.”
From the defendant's perspective, the app's launch could have been pushed back. Hart claims that Stand Up Digital’s lawsuit is taking advantage of him “in a similar manner … by using this meritless lawsuit to extract more money from him.”
He also claims that Stand Up Digital is responsible for the app's failure since it was “released into an app market where the overwhelming majority of gaming apps make insignificant revenue, and the few successful games, such as ‘Game of War,’ have advertising budgets in the tens of millions of dollars.”
The entertainer could not inform the company of the sexual affair in advance since he was helping the FBI's investigation into the matter. His effort to salvage his public persona was in his best interest as well as that of his associates. Kevin Hart is, therefore, demanding that the whole lawsuit be tossed out completely.