Read: All The Alleged Vince McMahon Text Messages In Janel Grant's WWE Lawsuit
The following article contains graphic accounts of physical abuse and sexual assault, as well as sexually explicit language throughout.
WWE was rocked in January as Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against the company, Vince McMahon, and John Laurinaitis under allegations of gross sexual misconduct. The complaint detailed graphic accounts of McMahon and Laurinaitis partaking in systemic exploitation of Ms. Grant, with alleged texts reflecting McMahon objectifying and degrading her, sometimes even as a bargaining chip in negotiations. Wrestling Inc. has read through the entirety of Janel Grant's complaint, and what follows is a collation of those alleged text messages from McMahon in a chronological timeline.
In Exhibit 63 of the complaint, it's alleged that on April 1, 2019 — before her eventual hiring by WWE — Grant texted McMahon about a meeting she had with an unnamed corporate officer earlier in the day, during which she remarked on his signature T-Rex skull on his office wall. McMahon is alleged to have responded, "[sic] btw if Ur a BAD girl the T-rex will eat U." "Seriously Janel wherever U land in WWE U will be a credit to the organization."
In Exhibits 72-77, it's recalled that Grant visited McMahon at his condo on May 5, 2019; during this time, he allegedly made several sexual advances despite Grant making clear she felt uncomfortable with his actions. She had tried to talk to him about the product's ongoing storylines, to which he suggested she watch "WWE Raw" and text him before the show. When she agreed, McMahon is alleged to have forcibly kissed her and attempted to undress her, spurring Grant to make an abrupt exit.
Vince McMahon allegedly filled Janel Grant's inbox after starting with WWE
Exhibit 78 describes a subsequent text exchange between Janel Grant and Vince McMahon on the day of "Raw" as per McMahon's suggestion. The complaint says Grant was shocked when McMahon appeared on the show and texted back in the middle of the live broadcast, noting that it was a nice message to receive.
The company hired Janel Grant in June 2019, and by this stage, it's detailed how Grant engaged in sexual acts with McMahon under duress while her role was being finalized. She alleges that she attempted to break off their physical relationship after gaining employment, but McMahon insisted to the contrary and ignored her refusal to consent.
In Exhibit 96, Grant said she was surprised that she hadn't had much work assigned to her, especially in comparison to her colleagues, who had complained about having too much. Rather, she said her inbox was only filled with controlling and sexual text messages from McMahon. In Exhibit 106, it's stated that by the summer of 2019, Grant's life had been consumed by McMahon's presence. Within the office, she said she felt under surveillance as his allies surrounded her. Outside of the office, McMahon's interactions with her were mostly of a sexual nature. He is described to have reduced his communication with her outside of sexting and fantasy talk, and any non-sexual texts related to life and/or work were either ignored or given short responses.
Sharing explicit content with a WWE referee
Exhibit 123 details Vince McMahon sending a message to Janel Grant, noting that he had been informed by a corporate officer that rumors were circulating about them on February 3, 2020. He said these rumors weren't good for either of them, and she was temporarily relocated to the XFL's workforce. Grant attempted to switch to XFL permanently, seeking an exit from her position with WWE, but McMahon denied her request. In Exhibit 126, it's alleged that McMahon started to share explicit images of Grant with people, despite imploring her to remain quiet on the matter previously.
In Exhibit 127, it's noted that McMahon allegedly texted Grant on March 26, 2020, describing in detail the circumstances surrounding him sharing the explicit images with a former WWE referee. McMahon described how said referee left to masturbate and told Grant that she's made him happy. Meanwhile, Exhibit 129 details messages from March 30, 2020, in which McMahon told her that the referee had shown an explicit image of her to their friend, marking the beginning of him allegedly sharing images without her consent and encouraging others to spread them around.
Vince McMahon shares a detailed fantasy
Janel Grant is later described as having expressed concerns over the sharing of images with people she did not know, especially as they were explicit and showed her face. She asked Vince McMahon to convey that she had no intention of engaging in sexual acts with these people. However, Exhibit 133 onward describes a harrowing tale of Grant being coerced into a threesome with an associate of McMahon's, referred to as a physical therapist from Alternative Clinic. As shown in Exhibit 138, McMahon allegedly detailed his fantasies of seeing her engaged in sexual relations.
"I LOVE it. That's U Janel. U just can't get enough can U? In the future it's going to B so bad that you'll demand to B f***ed twice a day and not just with [redacted] in a three way. Why not let others see the beautiful voluptuous body and watch U shake uncontrollably when U C*m. They'll go out of their minds. Then I'll find more friends and we'll tie U up so Ur helpless. I'll direct them to have their way any way they want! Who can make U [scream] the loudest!!! Maybe I'll just line them up and have [them] squirt in Ur mouth, Ur p***y all over your t**s and a** all at the same time. You'll B covered in c*m and we'll make U eat it all and taste everybody's c*m. The next morning you'll B a little sore but Ur still going to want more..."
These weren't the only texts of this nature either. Afterward, it's alleged that McMahon's messages to Grant became even more sexually charged and highlighted similar fantasies of trafficking her among other WWE employees.
Texts that portray Janel Grant as subservient
Exhibit 142 describes Vince McMahon becoming more sadistic, with his fantasies focused on control and scenarios in which Janel Grant would be overwhelmed and subservient in group settings.
"[Regarding] ur last picture. U need Ur panties ripped off and 3 BIG BLACK D***S in ALL 3 holes at the same time!!! Way up ur p***y and way up ur a** as far as they will go but even farther. And the thickest c**k goes down Ur throat so it makes U gag and convulse as those big black c**ks pound away it feels like from the start Ur being assaulted but it's made U c*m nonstop. Just one continuous orgasm and just before U pass out those big black d**ks squirt their loads of c*m inside U! As U lay on ur stomach the c*m is coming out of all Ur holes, I'll turn U over and jack off all over U."
In Exhibit 143, it's alleged that on one occasion, McMahon instructed Grant not to knock on his door, saying that he'd rape her in the hallway if he saw her. Exhibit 144 then details how McMahon is alleged to have texted about owning and controlling her, continuing to be sexually depraved in his messages. According to Exhibit 145, he ignored her when she mentioned her work anniversary with WWE. The next message detailed in the complaint reflects McMahon's alleged bragging over the sharing of explicit imagery of Grant with other men, noting that they all wanted to engage in sexual relations with her.
A fantasy involving WWE's tech crew
The complaint also notes that Vince McMahon openly shared explicit images and salacious stories about Janel Grant with WWE crew members at TV tapings. McMahon allegedly referred to this group as her "fan club," and sent her a text in which he admitted to showing her photos to the staffers, before highlighting his fantasy to traffic Grant to each of them.
"I just passed my phone around to a bunch of guys on the tech crew. They were screaming!! 'OMG'. 'She's f***ing beautiful'. 'Look at that a**'. 'I'd like to get that'. I paused to count out loud how many guys there were, 12. I then said 'OK there's 12 of U and she would love to f*** each and every one of U at one time', (the guys cheered), 'But she will only do it if she takes 3 at the time!' (that brought a huge reaction) 'She wants one deep in her a**, one way down her throat and one in her p***y and U can pound her and keep on pounding her till U pop Ur load. She may scream and say NO!! Although it would B difficult to say anything with a c**k down her throat,' (they laughed), I then said 'listen no matter what just pound away until U squirt!'"
The rest of the text details how McMahon told Grant that the crew was driven wild by his stories of her sexual abilities, coupled with his fantasy to share her with them in a group scenario. He concluded by telling her to imagine the fantasy actually happening.
Trafficking Janel Grant to John Laurinaitis and others
John Laurinaitis is named in the complaint within Exhibit 152 as another third party with whom Vince McMahon is alleged to have forced Janel Grant to enter into a sexual relationship. McMahon is alleged to have facilitated explicit image exchanges between them, including telling Grant when to create them, what to say, and providing her notes to adjust her performance. Following a three-way encounter involving McMahon, Laurinaitis, and Grant, McMahon allegedly texted her that Laurinaitis had hugged him like a bear and thanked him a dozen times for setting up the encounter. On February 5, 2021, as described in Exhibit 158, McMahon wanted Grant to establish a schedule for when other men could engage in relations with her.
"[Redacted] called me this afternoon begging to eat U and f*** U with his nice (hard) d**k," to which Janel Grant is shown to reply, "Give me another week baby and I'll be ready. I'm feeling more like myself. It's not great but it's getting better. Tell him soon!!!!." To this, McMahon replied, "I already told him baby. [By the way, John Laurinaitis] wants Tuesdays but not this coming one and the occasional Saturday but maybe I can shift it to Thursday nights?? ([Laurinaitis] would like ALL of the above)."
Exhibit 168 continues to describe McMahon's reinforcement that Grant was expected to sexually perform for him and Laurinaitis. On March 22, he wrote, "Do U promise to make me proud Baby? Will U show him what a p*rno star u can be? Will U show off for me like never before????," and, "On days when he's in town, I want him to f*** U every morning and later in the office too."
Telling Janel Grant to obey John Laurinaitis
Per Exhibit 169, Vince McMahon indicated on April 2, 2021, that Janel Grant should obey if John Laurinaitis wanted to bring in more men during their sexual encounters. Furthermore, McMahon suggested that she try out other men with Laurinaitis before introducing them to him, believing it would make them feel more comfortable.
The complaint continues to describe the trauma that Grant had endured at the hands of McMahon and Laurinaitis, as well as executives who enabled and ignored the malpractice. Exhibit 179 displays another alleged message from McMahon to Grant, "Those compliments will keep on coming baby. Just wait and see. I totally understand and agree [regarding] being scared of communication and photos. [Laurinaitis] gets drunk and sloppy and could easily make a mistake that could cost him his job and Urs too. Verbal communication is the way to go. That said, have U and [Laurinaitis] talked about breakfast tomorrow?"
The rest of the text details Grant's response to McMahon, revealing that she hadn't scheduled a meeting with John Laurinaitis as he complained about a new phone. She then noted that she wanted reassurance that he'd erased everything, and told McMahon that it wasn't worth the stress she'd been feeling regarding her and Laurinaitis' communications.
Janel Grant's Involvement in Negotiations with a WWE Superstar
After further horrific accounts of Vince McMahon violently sexually assaulting Janel Grant, coupled with continued attempts to solicit her to his associates, Exhibit 196 describes him texting a reminder that she was his slave. The next Exhibit alleges that McMahon continued to advertise a sexual encounter between Grant and a WWE Superstar in active negotiations with the company at the time, writing, "Here's what [Redacted] said after I told him that part of the deal was f***ing U, 'Lol, that's your turf!! She will be ruined after me and leave your a**! Plus after me your tool won't fit anymore!!'"
Brock Lesnar was identified as the WWE Superstar described in the lawsuit. It's alleged that McMahon ordered Grant to create personalized sexual content for the former UFC fighter, and a rendezvous had even been scheduled. However, plans fell through after Grant made excuses to back out. In 2022, McMahon was alleged to have abruptly distanced himself from Grant due to his wife, Linda McMahon, discovering their relationship and threatening him with a public divorce. Thus, McMahon allegedly pushed a non-disclosure agreement with Grant as the best way forward for all involved.
On January 24, 2022, while talks of an NDA were ongoing, McMahon allegedly continued to engage in sexual text message exchanges with Grant, as described in Exhibit 213, including encouraging her to send an explicit image to the WWE Superstar and requesting that she send him the content she had sent to him.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).