Selena Gomez and her mom, Mandy Teefy, are continuing to face backlash and now legal action following the “collapse” of their mental health app and organization, Wondermind.
The singer’s mental-health venture is facing more scrutiny after investors accused the company’s founders, including her and her mother, of fraud and claimed the business quietly shut down behind the scenes. The lawsuit, filed this month, claims that nearly $1.2 million was invested on promises of growth and success that never came to fruition. The legal action comes less than a year after a bombshell profile featured former employees describing the company, as well as Selena’s mother, as deeply dysfunctional and unstable. Read more about the new legal issues and how her team responded below.
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Selena Gomez & Her Mother's Mental Health Organization Faces Legal Battle
For the last decade of her successful career, the Wizards of Waverly Place star has been a strong advocate for mental health research and care. However, one of her ventures that ultimately failed, Wondermind, is continuing to have an impact on her.
Wondermind launched in 2022 with Selena, her mother Mandy Teefey, and entrepreneur Daniella Pierson as the founders, labeling itself as a "mental-health ecosystem" designed to make mental-health resources more accessible. The venture raised $5 million in funding and planned to put out a large collection of content and products, including a website, newsletter, podcasts, television and film projects, and eventually a mental-fitness app. The vocalist was positioned as the company's chief impact officer, which drew a lot of attention to their mission.
However, according to a new lawsuit filed by investors in Delaware federal court, many of the promises made by Wondermind never came to be. As reported by NBC News, the plaintiffs claim they were led to believe Selena would be closely involved as head of marketing and that the company had solid plans in place; meanwhile, the business allegedly struggled financially and failed to develop its promised app. The investors, who put nearly $1.2 million into the project, say they only learned about the extent of Wondermind's troubles after The Cut carried out an investigation and wrote a bombshell exposee that revealed problems within the company.
"Gomez purported to sign a contract obligating her to perform and then ignored it," the suit claims. "The partnerships did not exist. The initiatives never materialized. The app was never built. And for three years, while the Company quietly collapsed around them, not one of its founders, officers, or directors said a word to the investors whose money was funding the collapse."
Former Employees Called Wondermind 'Dysfunctional' & Selena Gomez's Legal Team Responds To The Lawsuit
The lawsuit's allegations arrived not long after The Cut's exposee painted a troubling picture of Wondermind's operations. The profile spoke with numerous former and current employees, many of whom stayed anonymous, and mentioned that there were often missed meetings, delayed projects, financial problems, and tensions between the pop star's mother and Pierson. Former employees also alleged that Teefey would disappear for extended periods, had unpredictable outbursts, and overall, what was described as "erratic behavior."
One former employee claimed the company's financial problems were known well before the public learned about them. At the same time, another expressed certainty that Selena knew her mother was struggling to run the business.
"I will say this with the utmost certainty - no doubt, hesitation in my mind: Selena knew her mother was not well enough to be running that company," an employee claimed, with the piece's author, Angelica Chápin, adding, "Employees say Wondermind was a dysfunctional and strange place to work, thanks to the instability of its CEO, Gomez's mother Mandy Teefey."
Since the news of the lawsuit broke last week, the "Bluest Flame" singer's legal team is pushing back strongly against the accusations made. Her attorney, Mathew Rosengart, called the claims baseless and stated they intend to seek dismissal.
"The allegations that Selena Gomez engaged in any way whatsoever in any purported 'fraud' or other wrongdoing are completely meritless, both factually and legally," he said in a statement.
