Terrence Howard Cries In Court – Says Wife Threatened To Release Damaging Medical Information To Usurp Divorce Settlement

Actor Terrence Howard cried in front of the judge while in the witness stand. He was describing how his wife threatened to release potentially damaging medical information about him to get a divorce settlement.

Attempting to explain how he had signed the divorce settlement in 2012 under “extreme duress,” Terrence Howard broke down. According to TMZ, the Oscar-nominated star cried in the witness box while trying to testify about how he signed the divorce settlement agreement owing to threats from his ex-wife Michelle Ghent. Apparently, the 46-year-old actor is trying to get the divorce settlement nullified on the grounds that he was forced to sign them while under duress. He claims he signed the papers only because he was being threatened.

Howard, who currently stars in on the hit Fox series Empire, shared that his wife threatened to release confidential and sensitive medical information about him. The release of such information would have been devastating to his career and would have made it impossible for the actor to seek employment in the entertainment industry owing to the implied stigma.

Still to be corroborated, it is rumored that Terrance Howard’s wife threatened him she would tell people he had a Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD), reported the Daily Mail. While court transcripts are meant to be private, it is believed Howard may have indicated he even has a recording of his wife threatening him to release such medical information. Thereafter he added that he felt threatened and pressured to sign a divorce settlement which accorded “an unusually large sum of money” to his wife.

While testifying, Terrence Howard reportedly broke down and tried not to cry. Things got even more complex when Howard’s sister-in-law, Yvonne Howard, testified that a sex tape of Terrence exists and was being allegedly used to threaten him and force his compliance. Though the video hasn’t been leaked yet, it allegedly shows Terrence Howard having sex with an unidentified woman, as another woman films them, reported TMZ.

After crying, Terrence Howard then dramatically got angry and requested for a short recess to “compose himself,” reported New York Daily News. However, through the tears he did manage to blame his ex-wife.

“Michelle was threatening that if I didn’t get this mediation, this settlement agreement, (signed) she would release to the public that I had herpes and that she would release the videos and audios of me in a very private and intimate place and that I would never be able to work again in this business.”

A lot of past mistakes committed by Terrence Howard were reportedly raked in the court by Ghent’s lawyers, who also accused the star of physically abusing her. It is quite certain now that though the divorce took place in 2012, its repercussions wouldn’t end anytime soon, especially when Howard’s ex-wife wants him to pay $500,000 in back spousal support he allegedly owes her and knows he makes $125,000 an episode after filing a subpoena to obtain the actor’s series contract. No wonder then, Terrence Howard cried in court.

[Image Credit | Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images]