Terrence Howard Cries on Stand

Known for his role as Lucious Lyon in “Empire“, Terrence Howard’s net worth is reportedly suffering because his ex-wife, Michelle Ghent, is gunning for his paycheck after he signed the divorce settlement in 2012.

He said his ex-wife Michelle Ghent left him “terrified” after allegedly threatening to release private recordings and medical information in a bid to ruin his career. He now stars in the hit Fox TV series “Empire”, which is filming its second season in the Chicago area. “I thought she had perhaps made the threats out of anger”.

Though she alleged Terrence grabbed her by the neck, pushed her against the bathroom wall and began strangling her, he has has insisted it was mutual combat, claiming she pepper spayed him during the fight.

Howard said he had hoped to get the recordings back from Ghent during their marriage but was unsuccessful.

Ghent, meanwhile, has accused Howard of domestic violence, infidelity and hiding money from her.

Ghent’s lawyers hammered him about his former arrests, his sexual relationships with other women during the couple’s engagement and claims he physically abused Ghent.

In the 2011 conversation, Ghent is heard telling Howard, “I will (expletive) bury you deep within the ground”.

“There is your naked a- dancing in the bathroom singing out loud”, she said. She also told the actor that she had called the Internal Revenue Service to report improper deductions.

The actor’s testimony will conclude in court Monday.

The pair were married in January 2010, and Ghent filed for divorce a year later.

The divorce agreement gave Ghent several bank accounts and left Howard with responsibility for several debts, including tax liens.

Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Actor Terrence Howard, seen with then-wife Michelle Ghent in 2010, is trying to get their 2012 divorce settlement overturned.

The Oscar-nominated “Hustle & Flow” star spoke softly and slowly and lifted a tissue to wipe his eyes at one point.