Elon Musk's ex, MAGA-defecting commentator Ashley St. Clair, says she turned down $40 million to stay quiet about the billionaire and chose to talk anyway.
St. Clair, who shares a young son with Musk, his 13th child, revealed at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday that she rejected an alleged $40 million nondisclosure agreement so she could sit for an interview in "Musk," a nearly four-hour documentary from Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney. The film premiered at the festival's 83rd edition, according to Variety.
"I was offered the opportunity not to speak for $40 million," St. Clair told reporters, saying the sum forced her to weigh what her voice was actually worth. She framed the choice as a lesson for her children that no amount of comfort should come before telling the truth.
Now 28, St. Clair once built a following as a right-wing, anti-trans commentator after meeting Charlie Kirk at 18. She now says she regrets platforming those views, chalking it up to youth, and hopes the risk she is taking "at least helps a little bit."
Musk declined to be interviewed and has long branded the film a "hit piece." Gibney's team simulated his participation with an AI avatar built from his real interviews, for a movie that casts the self-styled genius as a modern "confidence man," per the synopsis. Gibney called Musk "very dangerous" and said he struggles with empathy. Added St. Clair: "It is a deliberate rejection of empathy."
The premiere lands as St. Clair separately sues Musk's AI company, xAI, alleging its Grok chatbot generated nonconsensual sexual deepfakes of her, including one altered from a photo taken when she was 14.