Shannon Sharpe Claims OnlyFans Star Gabriella Zuniga 'Plans On Releasing Sex Tape To Make Me Look Guilty' — After She Accused Him Of Rape in $50Million Lawsuit
Sharpe has slammed Zuniga for trying to 'blackmail' him.
April 23 2025, Published 2:29 p.m. ET
Shannon Sharpe has revealed the woman accusing him of rape is threatening to release a portion of their sex tape in the coming days, RadarOnline.com can report.
OnlyFans model Gabriella Zuniga, who has been identified by Sharpe's attorney, is suing the NFL Hall of Famer for $50million – and has already released audio evidence she says proves her point.
The former NFL star has denied rape allegations.
In a scathing rebuttal to Zuniga's charges, Sharpe went on Instagram to share his side of the story, saying that he was being blackmailed and extorted by the model.
"This is a shakedown," Sharpe said at the start of his video, before turning his attention to Zuniga's lawyer, Tony Buzbee, who is also in the news for going after Jay-Z and Sean "Diddy" Combs on sex trafficking allegations.
The 56-year-old continued: "Tony Buzbee targets Black men, and I believe he’s going to release a 30-second clip of a sex tape that tries to make me look guilty, and plays into every stereotype you could possibly imagine."
Sharpe did not deny a tape exists but insisted it was much longer than the small portion that could be shared publicly.
"Hey Tony, instead of releasing your edit, put the whole video out," Sharpe demanded. "I don’t have it, or I would myself."
Zuniga is suing Sharpe for $50million.
While Buzbee has yet to address Sharpe's challenge, he did release audio of a phone call in which the former Denver Bronco allegedly threatens to "choke" Zuniga.
The threat came after Zuniga warned Shape not to "manipulate" her during an argument.
An enraged Sharpe fired back: "If you say that word one more time, I'm gonna f---ing choke the s--- out of you when I see you."
After several moments of silence, Zuniga replied that she doesn't want to be choked.
"Yes, you do," Shape replied. "I don't think you have a choice in the matter."
Sharpe has been proactive in his denials, initially releasing a series of racy text messages he received and exchanged with Zuniga, which he said prove their relationship was consensual.
The athlete's lawyer provided Radar with a statement fired off on his client's behalf, calling her case "filled with lies, distortions, and misrepresentations."
Attorney Lanny Davis included a collection of salacious messages Zuniga allegedly sent to Sharpe, which Davis said "are just a sampling of a broader pattern of graphic, sexual communications initiated by Ms. Zuniga.
"The evidence paints a clear picture: this was a consensual, adult relationship that included role-playing, sexual language, and fantasy scenarios explicitly requested by Ms. Zuniga."
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Davis then addressed the texts they decided to reveal, saying: "To set the record straight, we are releasing several of Ms. Zuniga’s own explicit text messages to Mr. Sharpe that clearly indicate the nature of their relationship was consensual and sexual in nature — and, in many cases, initiated by her with specific and graphic requests.
The graphic messages included alleged requests from Zuniga, such as: "I want you to put a dog collar around my neck and choke me with it while you're f---ing me."
Another read: "I wanna put my tongue in your a--hole and then marry u."
One of the last texts, accompanied by a photo of the alleged victim seemed to be asking Sharpe for money: "I know u miss this big juicy a--…$25k for each cheek."
Davis contends the relationship was ended after the request.
