Jay-Z Makes Appearance at ‘Mufasa’ Red Carpet With Tina Knowles and Family Amid Lawsuit Drama

Jay-Z made his first public appearance with his family at Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King premiere in Los Angeles, following a lawsuit accusing him and Sean “Diddy” Combs of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000.

Jay-Z, 55, denied the allegations as “heinous.” His mother-in-law, Tina Knowles, reportedly liked an Instagram post about the claims on Monday.

As previously reported, 12-year-old Blue Ivy makes her acting debut in the new film as Kiara. Beyoncé, 43, reprises her role as Nala, Kiara’s mother, from the 2019 Lion King remake.

Screenshots of Knowles’ interaction with the report spread on social media and led some to assume that she, and presumably Beyoncé, had taken a stance on the accusations.

Not long after the incident, Knowles took to Instagram to clear the air regarding the liked post. “I was Hacked ! As you all know I do not play about my family. So if you see something uncharacteristic of me. Just know that it is not me !,” Ms. Tina wrote in a separate post on her account.

“Please stop playing with me !!!! ‘No weapon formed against my family shall prosper,’” she wrote in the caption for the aforementioned post.

NBC News was the first to report of the lawsuit, in which the anonymous accuser claimed that she was raped by both Carter and Diddy at an afterparty following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards.

The accuser originally filed the suit in October and only named Diddy. An amended complaint filed by lawyer Tony Buzbee included Jay-Z as a defendant.

In a lengthy statement shared to Roc Nation’s social media accounts, Jay-Z likened the accusation to a “blackmail attempt” that he is “more than prepared to deal” with while calling Buzbee a “deplorable human.”

“My only heartbreak is for my family,” wrote Jay. “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people.”

“Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree?” he added. “These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.”

Earlier this week, a civil lawsuit accused Jay-Z and Combs of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in 2000. The legal claim was filed by attorney Tony Buzbee. The case highlights ongoing tensions and legal disputes between Buzbee and the rap mogul. A timeline of the events can be found here.