Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has initiated legal action against Elon Musk, alleging breach of contract and fraud in connection with a failed partnership deal. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco Superior Court, claims that Musk and his company, X (formerly Twitter), engaged in deceptive practices that led to the abrupt cancellation of a planned talk show hosted by Lemon.

According to Lemon, the partnership was meant to culminate in him hosting an exclusive talk show on X. The agreement, which was reportedly solidified in January, promised Lemon a substantial financial package including $1.5 million in the first year, a share of advertising revenue, and additional compensation tied to follower growth. The deal also included terms for Lemon to provide exclusive video content to X for a specified period before it could be shared elsewhere.

The crux of Lemon's lawsuit centers around allegations that Musk and X used the prospect of this partnership to attract advertisers to the platform but then backed out on the deal at the last minute. Lemon asserts that his name was leveraged to enhance X’s media profile, and the partnership was scrapped just a week before the scheduled premiere of the show. Moreover, he claims to have “incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses” in preparation for the show, and has yet to be compensated since the deal fell through.

Lemon's legal team argues that the abrupt cancellation of the agreement without proper compensation constitutes fraud and negligent misrepresentation. Fraud, in this context, refers to the deliberate deception of the partnership's terms to induce Lemon into the agreement, while negligent misrepresentation involves a lack of due diligence in ensuring the accuracy of the information provided. Additionally, Lemon accuses Musk and X of breach of contract for failing to honor the terms of the deal and misappropriation of his name and likeness.

Lemon’s attorney, Carney Shegerian, emphasized the severity of the alleged wrongdoing, stating, “X’s executives used Don to prop up their advertising sales pitch, then canceled their partnership and dragged Don’s name through the mud.”

According to CBS News, the lawsuit seeks damages totaling $35 million.