Last week, Girls Trip star Tiffany Haddish was accused of child sexual abuse for incidents that happened in the 2010s. A plaintiff identified only as 22-year-old Jane Doe has accused the stand-up comedian/actress, as well as MADtv alum Aries Spears of making her and her now-15-year-old brother, known as John Doe” of performing “sexually suggestive acts on camera while underage.” Now Haddish has responded to the accusations that have been leveled against her.
Days after Tiffany Haddish’s lawyer, Andrew Brettler, described this lawsuit as an extortion attempt from the plaintiff’s mother that’s been going on for years, Haddish herself has released a statement stating that while there’s little she can say about this matter, she does regret her role in the video that is a key piece of this lawsuit. Per her words shared on Instagram:
I know people have a bunch of questions. I get it. I’m right there with you. Unfortunately, because there is an ongoing legal case, there’s very little that I can say right now. But clearly, while this sketch was intended to comedic, it wasn’t funny at all — and I deeply regret having agreed to act in it. I really look feared to being able to share a lot more about this situation as soon as I can.
For those out of the loop on this controversy surrounding Tiffany Haddish, there were two specific incidents brought up in this lawsuit involving Jane and John Doe, with Haddish and Aries Spears having reportedly met their mother on the comedy circuit about a decade ago. The first incident happened in 2013, when Jane was 14 years old and she was courted by Haddish and Spears to be in a commercial. The two showed the girl a video of some coeds arguing over a subway sandwich that then led to these individuals ““moaning and making sexual noises as they both ate the sandwich in a manner that simulated the act of fellatio,” as described by the lawsuit. Haddish asked Jane to replicate these actions, but when the girl, who was “physically, emotionally, and mentally uncomfortable” when hearing these instructions, wasn’t able to do this satisfactorily, Haddish payed her $100 and sent her on her way.
The second incident, which is the one Tiffany Haddish was referring to in her statement, took place a year later and revolves around a video called “Through a Pedophile’s Eyes.” This time, John Doe was the one who would be on camera, and the lawsuit states that he spent most of it in his underwear and dealt with, among other things, Aries Spears allegedly putting baby oil on his back. The shoot ended with John in tears, and when his mother demanded to see the footage that was recorded, she was told it had been deleted because her son was “uncooperative.”
Cut to now, Tiffany Haddish made it clear that she wishes she hadn’t been involved in the making of “Through a Pedophile’s Eyes,” but beyond that, she’s not willing to comment further since this is an ongoing case. Obviously these allegations are a big deal, and we’ll continue to provide updates on what’s happening with her and Aries Spears regarding the lawsuit. It’s also worth mentioning that Funny or Die, one of the online platforms that “Through a Pedophile’s Eyes” released on, has described the video as being “absolutely disgusting” and removed it from the website upon learning of its existence, as it was user-generated content rather than something Funny or Die had a hand in putting together.
Meanwhile, Tiffany Haddish is still has various movies and TV shows on the way, including being part of the cast of Disney’s Haunted Mansion reboot, which comes out on March 10, 2023. Her Girls Trip co-star Regina Hall also recently said that Girls Trip 2 has been written, but it remains to be seen when the sequel will begin production.
