Jonah Hill’s ex-girlfriend Sarah Brady accuses him of ‘emotional abuse’

Jonah Hill’s former girlfriend Sarah Brady has alleged that the actor subjected her to “emotional abuse” over the course of their relationship.

Brady, a surf instructor, shared a series of screenshots on her Instagram Stories on Friday (7 July) and Saturday (8 July), allegedly showing text message exchanges between her and Hill.

The pair dated in 2021, with Hill confirming their romance in October. They made their red carpet debut at the premiere of Don’t Look Up in December 2021. It is unclear when they split up.

Hill, 39, is currently dating Olivia Millar, the co-owner of an online vintage shop called Chasseresse. They were first spotted together in August 2022 and in early June, the couple welcomed their first child together.

Brady posted a screenshot of text messages that purportedly showed Hill appearing to ask her to take down photographs of herself in bathing suits on her Instagram profile, adding: “Respect however you want to live your life you only get one. Sort of done with explaining myself.”

She appeared to reassure him that she had “removed” three posts, except her “best surfing video” and asked if he would “feel better if the cover frame was different”.

Hill allegedly replied: “Yes one that isn’t of your a** in a thong.”

Brady replied: “Not a thong but k”, to which Hill said: “And as far as other pictures you in a bathing suit surfing or not… I’m done. There’s tons I’m just going back the past month.”

After she told him that she had deleted “all the posts”, the Superbad star reportedly said that while it was a “good start”, she didn’t “seem to get” what he wanted.

“But it’s not my place to teach you. I’ve made my boundaries clear. You refuse to let go of some of them and you’ve made that clear and I hope it makes you happy,” he apparently wrote in a text.

The surfer wrote above the screenshot: “This is a warning to all girls. If your partner is talking to you like this, make an exit plan. Love y’all! Call me if you need an ear.”

Another screenshot allegedly shows Hill listing out his “boundaries for a romantic partnership”.

The text message read: “Plain and simple. If you need: Surfing with men; boundaryless [sic] inappropriate friendships with men; to model; to post pictures of yourself in a bathing suit; to post sexual pictures; friendships with women who are in unstable places and from your wild recent past beyond getting a lunch or coffee or something respectful.

“I am not the right partner for you. If these things bring you to a place of happiness I support it and there will be no hard feelings. These are my boundaries for a romantic partnership.”

The message continued: “My boundaries with you based on the ways these actions have hurt our trust.”

Brady captioned the post: “F*** it. See the misuse of the term ‘boundaries’?”

The Independent has contacted Hill and Brady’s representatives for comment.

In another Instagram Story, Brady wrote: “I too struggle with mental health but I do not use it to control [others] like he did to me.

“It’s been a year of healing and growth with the help of loved ones and doctors to get me back to living my life without guilt, shame and self-judgement for things as small as surfing in a swimsuit rather than a more conservative wetsuit. And I’m sure there’s still much more healing from this abuse ahead of me.”

She wrote in another Story: “I hope my ex has a daughter. Maybe she’ll turn him into a real feminist because the fact that he calls himself a feminist now is laughable.”

Brady added: “If I could have one wish for him it would be that he is surrounded by feminist men who can hold him accountable to grow in the ways he has expressed he wants to. I think fame can put people in an echo chamber of viewpoints, which can enable emotionally abusive behaviour.”

Her final Instagram Story read: “Someone being an emotionally abusive partner doesn’t mean they’re a terrible person (often stems from their own trauma) and at the same time it doesn’t mean it’s OK.”

Hill gained praise for speaking openly about his mental health in his Netflix documentary Stutz.

The documentary, which was released last November, saw the 21 Jump Street star interviewing his longtime therapist Phil Stutz, who shares tools for coping with mental health struggles and says they “turn problems to possibilities”.

Hill opened up about how he struggled with his self-esteem as a teenager and found that becoming famous “didn’t cure” his issues. He began seeing Stutz when he was around the age of 33 because he felt “at my core, I’m still this unlovable person”.

“It made me beyond depressed. At the same time, the media kept being really brutal about my weight,” he said in the film.

Hill said he made the film to “give therapy and the tools” he learned from Stutz to more people.