A surprise divorce announcement by the world’s richest man, steamy texts, a private investigation, claims of blackmail — and a suspicion that politics are behind it all. These aren’t plot points in a movie coming soon to Amazon Prime. They’re the increasingly surprising events swirling around Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder.

Mr. Bezos raised the stakes on Thursday when he accused The National Enquirer and its publisher, American Media Inc., of trying to extort him. In a blog post, he said the company had threatened to publish lewd photos of him if he did not say publicly that the tabloid’s earlier reporting on him was not motivated by politics.

The story will probably get wilder. Before it does, here’s a primer on Mr. Bezos’ divorce, the National Enquirer, and why the battle between them could have implications for President Trump.