Elon Musk said his brief business relationship with Don Lemon “went sour” after an “invasive and charged interview” with the ex-CNN host last year, according to court documents filed on Wednesday. The combative interview, Musk said, led to him ditching his $1.5 million deal with Lemon.
Lemon sued Musk in August 2024, claiming the X owner refused to pay him after a content deal between the two blew up following the contentious interview. Musk, according to his filing in California Supreme Court, is now aiming to have the lawsuit thrown out; a hearing has been set for Feb. 26.
Bloomberg was first to report the news.
According to the billionaire’s latest filing, Lemon “repeatedly — and publicly — interrogated Musk in a sprawling interview about, among other topics, his ability to run his companies, including X; his political and ethical beliefs; his mental health; and his use of prescription medication.”
“Upset with the rupture of the potential commercial relationship and the all-too foreseeable consequences of his actions, [Lemon] filed this lawsuit,” the filing suggested.
X CEO Linda Yaccarino recruited Lemon to start hosting interviews on X after his departure from CNN in 2023. The partnership went sideways soon after Lemon interviewed Musk, though, in the first episode of his X show. You can watch that interview by clicking here.
“This case isn’t about free speech — as the whole world knows, Musk says whatever he wants, whenever he wants,” Carney Shegerian, Lemon’s attorney, said in a statement to Bloomberg. “It’s about X intentionally and carelessly misleading my client, causing him serious financial and reputational damage.”
Lemon, like many other celebrities and media pundits, ditched X following the 2024 election, saying the platform was not a place for “honest debate.”
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