After a year of peddling crypto art NFTS, a host of celebrities — including Jimmy Fallon and Gwyneth Paltrow — have been sued in a new class-action lawsuit. Tied to the infamous Bored Ape NFTs, Fallon and Paltrow have allegedly misled followers into buying into the JPEG sham.
Fallon infamously peddled NFTs on his TV show — The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. In a segment with Paris Hilton, the self-proclaimed Queen of the Metaverse, Fallon urged viewers to buy their own Bored Apes. The TV segment was one of the cringiest minutes of television since television began.
On Thursday, the class action lawsuit was filed against a number of “A-List celebrities”, including Jimmy Fallon, Snoop Dogg, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Hart, Justin Beiber and more. Filed in California, the lawsuit alleges that these celebrities were paid off for their promotions without disclosure.
In an article by The Hollywood Reporter, it’s stated that the aforementioned celebrities were scouted by Guy Oseary, a talent manager, in partnership with Yuga Labs. Osesry’s venture capital firm is claimed to be an early investor in Moonpay, a crypto service that the celebrities are said to have been discreetly paid through.
The lawsuit claims that the promotion from celebrities not only increased demand for BAYC NFTs, but also Moonpay. Furthermore, Bored Ape NFTs promoted Apecoin cryptocurrency, spiking the worth of the virtual token.
The lawsuit points out that Jimmy Fallon not only peddled Bored Ape NFTs on his talk show, but also Moonpay, a further connection for the two. Additionally, pop star Justin Bieber received an NFT valued at $1.3 million, which he claimed he purchased with his own money on an Instagram post.
Marvel actress Gwyneth Paltrow was also included in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Paltrow has a financial stake in Moonpag that she has kept secret, despite publicly discussing and promoting the company.
Despite the immense detail included in the lawsuit, Yuga Labs has publicly claimed it is without merit.
“In our view, these claims are opportunistic and parasitic. We strongly believe that they are without merit, and look forward to proving as much,” a spokesperson said.
At the time of writing, Bored Ape NFTs and its partner cryptocurrency ApeCoin have plummeted in value. Following waves of crypto crashes, the Bored Ape Yacht Club is nowhere near the heights of value it was last year.