Beyoncé and Jay-Z Attend Mufasa: The Lion King Premiere with Daughter Blue Ivy One Day After Rapper Denies Child Rape Allegation

Beyoncé and her daughter Blue Ivy Carter star in the new Disney prequel ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’

By Jack SmartJack Smart Jack Smart is the Movies Staff Writer at PEOPLE. With 10 years of experience as an entertainment journalist, he previously worked at The A.V. Club and Backstage.People Editorial Guidelines  Published on December 9, 2024 09:35PM ESTComments

From left: Tina Knowles, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Carter. Photo:

LISA O’CONNOR/AFP via Getty

Beyoncé, Jay-Z and their 12-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carter made a public appearance at the premiere of the Mufasa: The Lion King on Dec. 9, one day after the rapper publicly denied a rape allegation made against him.

The singer-actress, 43, reprises her voiceover role as Nala in Disney’s Mufasa (in theaters Dec. 20), the new prequel to 2019’s photorealistic Lion King remake. Joining her as onscreen lioness cub Kiara is Blue Ivy.

The couple and Blue Ivy posed alongside Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles, on the carpet at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, Monday night.

Jay-Z, 55, has been accused of raping a 13-year-old girl 24 years ago in a civil lawsuit filed in October by a woman identified only as Jane Doe. After first listing Sean “Diddy” Combs as a defendant, the suit has since been amended to include Jay-Z (whose real name is Shawn Carter).

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JAY-A at the ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ premiere at in L.A. on Dec. 9, 2024.

On Sunday, Dec. 8, the rapper vehemently denied the allegations, writing on the X (formerly Twitter) account of his entertainment company Roc Nation that the filing was “a blackmail attempt,” speaking out against Jane Doe’s attorney, Tony Buzbee.

“What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!” Jay-Z posted. “These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!! Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.”

Beyoncé and her family appeared at the premiere alongside costars Aaron Pierre, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner. Also in attendance on the red carpet was director Barry Jenkins.

On Instagram, Beyoncé praised her “gorgeous baby girl” alongside premiere photos later on Monday night. “This is your night. You worked hard and you did such a beautiful job as the voice of Kiara. Your family could not be prouder. Keep shining,” she wrote.

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Jay-Z and Beyoncé at the Mufasa: The Lion King premiere.

Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

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In her lawsuit, the woman claims she was raped by Combs and Jay-Z while a still-unnamed female celebrity watched during a party in a New York City residence following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. Combs, 55, was recently denied bail for a third time and is still being held in a federal prison in Brooklyn on sex trafficking and racketeering charges after his arrest in September. The musician has his trial scheduled for May 2025.

In his statement on X, Jay-Z made rare comments about his family, including 12-year-old Blue Ivy and twins Rumi and Sir, 7. “My only heartbreak is for my family,” he wrote. “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people.”

From left: Tina Knowles, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and Blue Ivy Carter.

Amy Sussman/WireImage

After the rapper broke his silence on the allegations, his mother-in-law Tina Knowles’ Instagram account “liked” an Instagram post about the news. On Dec. 9, hours before the Mufasa premiere, Knowles returned to Instagram, writing that her account had been hacked.

“No weapon formed against my family shall prosper,” Knowles captioned the post, which said: “I was Hacked ! As you all know I do not play about my family,” she wrote. “So if you see something uncharacteristic of me . Just know that it is not me !”

Mufasa: The Lion King is in theaters Dec. 20.