Drama behind the scenes of All the Queen’s Men has now moved into the legal space, with actor Skyh Black sending a cease-and-desist letter to series creator and actor Christian Keyes. Black alleges that Keyes made false and harmful statements that could negatively impact his career.
According to documents obtained by TMZ, Black — who portrayed Addiction Anthony on the BET+ series — has hired prominent attorney Marty Singer to demand that Keyes walk back remarks he allegedly made in a recent social media post.
The letter reportedly describes the move as Keyes’ “first and last chance to avoid litigation.”
The conflict stems from a Facebook video Keyes shared last month, where he spoke about potential spin-offs and prequels connected to All the Queen’s Men. During the video, Keyes claimed Black would not be part of any future installments of the franchise and alleged that the actor showed up to set intoxicated.
“You don’t get to show up inebriated and brag about it,” Keyes said in the video. “So yeah… Skyh won’t be back. He will be written out for that and other reasons.”
Black’s legal team strongly rejects that version of events. In the cease-and-desist letter, his attorney reportedly labeled the claims as “textbook defamation,” insisting that Black was neither intoxicated nor fired for cause.
Black argues that All the Queen’s Men was canceled by BET+, not that he was let go, and alleges the accusations were made as retaliation after he raised concerns about Keyes’ behavior on set.
Those concerns reportedly included public confrontations. Black claims Keyes yelled at him and accused him of being high in front of roughly 300 cast and crew members.
In the same video, Keyes admitted to being “abrasive” toward an unnamed actor, saying, “You’re not supposed to be ad-libbing, and this is MY show, this isn’t the standup comedy hour.”
The cease-and-desist letter demands that Keyes delete the statements, issue an immediate public retraction and apology, and stop making further comments about Black.
Although the original Facebook video has been removed, a related YouTube clip is still online. Black’s attorneys reportedly say their demands extend to Keyes and anyone “acting in concert” with him.
The legal dispute comes as Keyes has already been in the spotlight over his public fallout with Tyler Perry.
According to The Grio, the actor-writer previously accused Perry and Tyler Perry Studios of trying to strip him of creator credit for All the Queen’s Men and changing the show’s original vision.
As of this writing, Keyes has not publicly apologized to Black.
