Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni.
Getty Images(2)Blake Lively and Justin BaldoniThe reported crack made headlines months before And it ends with us The Costars filed lawsuits.
While Lively and Baldoni promoted the film in August 2024, rumors began swirling about an alleged feud between the duo. Fans noticed that Lively was promoting the film with some of her actors while Baldoni, who was directing the film, did not join for interviews or press opportunities. At the same time, Lively received backlash from fans for how she handled the topic of domestic violence in the film. (It's later Providing domestic violence resources.)
Months later, New York Times It was announced that Lively had filed a lawsuit against Baldoni for sexual harassment. Baldoni denied all the accusations against him December 2024 suitwhich he obtained Us Weekly.
Days later, Baldoni was among 10 plaintiffs who launched a campaign $250 million lawsuit against New York Times For her coverage of Lively's accusations. (Official spokesman New York Times He said we That the outlet plans to “vigorously defend against the lawsuit.”)
vitality I filed a lawsuit on the same day against Baldoni in federal court in New York that reversed her previous allegations — which had been filed with the California Department of Civil Rights.
Scroll down for an explanation of the alleged feud and lawsuits between Lively and Baldoni:
How did the alleged dispute start?
In August 2024, speculation surrounding a possible rift on set began to spread after fans noticed that Lively wasn't following Baldoni on Instagram — nor was anyone else in the cast at the time. Fuel was added to the fire when Baldoni was noticeably absent from joint press interviews.
At the start of press for the film, Lively revealed that her husband, Ryan Reynoldswrote part of the rooftop scene in And it ends with us. In a separate interview, Baldoni made the comment that Lively should direct a sequel to the film. Both remarks went viral on TikTok and sparked feud speculation. A source said exclusively we At the time Lively and Baldoni were “Creative differences” While filming the movie.
“There were two camps in the movie — Team Blake and Team Justin,” the insider said. “This creative struggle set the tone for the negative experience behind the scenes and made them not talk anymore.”
Months after a reported feud between costars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, a lawsuit has been filed against him for sexual harassment. In the lawsuit, which was filed on Friday, December 20, and obtained by Us Weekly after it was reported by TMZ and the New York Times, Lively accuses Baldoni of shooting[…]
Who is suing whom?
Months after the film hit theaters (and in the same month it was released on Netflix), Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni for sexual harassment. In the lawsuit filed in December 2024, Lively also accused Baldoni of waging a “social manipulation” campaign against her to “destroy” her reputation.
In a statement to New York Times Regarding her lawsuit, Lively said: “I hope my legal action will help pull back the curtain on these evil retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak out about misconduct and help protect others who may be targeted.”
Baldoni's lawyer Brian FriedmanShe called Lively's accusations “completely false, outrageous and intentionally indecent” in a statement to weAlleging that Lively filed the lawsuit to “repair her negative reputation” and “reframe the narrative” around the film's production.
Baldoni responded days later with his own lawsuit, in which he was listed as one of the 10 plaintiffs who filed suit. New York Times for $250 million after reporting on Lively's lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Lively pursued a “strategic and manipulative” smear campaign against Baldoni and “carefully selected” communications while leaving out key details.
Spokesperson New York Times He said in a statement to: we The publication stands by its story and plans to “vigorously defend against the lawsuit.”
“The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts wherever they lead,” the statement said. “Our story was reported accurately and responsibly. It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including text messages and emails that we carefully and extensively quote in the article. Those texts and emails were also the core of Blake Lively's discrimination lawsuit in California against Justin Baldoni and his associates.
The statement continued: “To address some inaccuracies in the lawsuit, when requesting comments from Mr. Baldoni and others who will be mentioned in the article, The times We shared the information we intended to release, including references to specific text messages and documents, and asked them to identify any inaccuracies, provide additional context, and speak with our team. Mr. Baldoni, the Wayfarer and the other subjects chose not to have any conversations with them The times Or forward any of the specified text messages or documents and alternatively send a joint response via email, which is posted in full. (They also sent their response to The times 11:16 PM ET on December 20, not 2:16 AM ET on December 21 as the complaint says.)”
Lively's lawyers said we The lawsuit was based on a “patently false premise,” while Baldoni's lawyer continues to deny any wrongdoing.
On the same day, Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni in a New York court that reversed her previous claims, which had been filed in California.
Who said what?
Among many allegations in her lawsuit, Lively alleges that she was He's not the only cast member To complain about Baldoni. Lively also claimed that there was a meeting – which Reynolds attended – held in January 2024 to address some of her concerns about And it ends with us' production.
Some of Lively's demands that were addressed included “no more nude videos or photos of women being shown to Blake, no more mention of Baldoni's 'past addiction to pornography,' no more discussions about his sexual conquests in front of Blake and others, and no more mention of genitals.” For the cast and crew, no more inquiries about Blake's weight, and no more mention of Blake's deceased father.
In the lawsuit that Baldoni filed with other plaintiffs, Lively's accusations were addressed and countered by the actor's interpretation of the events. One example of this is Lively being fat-shamed while Baldoni claimed that he asked a trainer to weigh Lively due to his back problems. Another example of the differing recollections of events relates to Lively's claim that Baldoni had a “long outburst” that delayed production due to social media backlash over her costumes. Baldoni called the incident “professional” and noted that although he “cried briefly during the conversation,” he said it was “in response to what he believed was a genuine compliment from Lively.” He now believes the alleged comment was a “manipulative tactic.” The third example relates to the allegation regarding “pornography” on set, which Baldoni claims was a photo of a home birth.
within Several other counterclaimsthe lawsuit alleged that key communications had previously been deleted New York Times – like an emoji missing from the end of a text message – regarding an alleged effort from Baldoni’s team Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Appel To generate bad press for Lively.
In response to the lawsuit, Lively's lawyer said in a statement to: we Baldoni's allegations change nothing in her accusations against him.
Updated 12/31/21 at 11:30 PM ET: Justin Baldoni was one of 10 plaintiffs filing a $250 million lawsuit against The New York Times following its reporting on actor Blake Lively after she sued him for sexual harassment. The plaintiffs in the suit, which also includes publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Appel as well as It Ends With Us (…)
How do Taylor Swift — and others — relate to the lawsuit?
In Lively's lawsuit, she Former stars Leighton Meester, Anna Kendrick and Ben Affleck It was referenced in an alleged “scenario planning” document drafted by Baldoni’s team. “Our recommended approach is to provide reporters who reach out for comment, if it is clear they are referring to you, with appropriate background information (listed in Scenario 1) to ensure their stories are balanced and that speculation can be turned into another story.” Among the many people I have had problems working with ( Leighton Meester, Anna Kendrick, Ben Affleck, etc.),” the documents state. Hailey Bieber It was also referred to by Baldoni as an alleged plan of “underhanded promotion” against the actress while she was Lively's girlfriend. Taylor Swift It was too His team reminded him In reference to the pop star's loyal fans.
Exhibits attached to the complaint showed that a crisis management expert working for Baldoni wrote in an email dated August 2024: “We have seen the most benign issues become giant because of social networks or that larger crises have no impact on social networks at all. You can tell at this point but, BL has some of the same fan base as TS, so we will take it seriously.”
A separate “scenario planning” document by Baldoni noted, “Our team could also explore stories about the weaponization of the feminist movement and how people like Taylor Swift have been accused of using these tactics to ‘bully’ to get what they want.” (Baldoni's lawsuit included a text from Appel that said: “This document is an overview… We need to prepare as if it will also go to great lengths with the press. It's a good thing we're all preparing for the worst outcome because then… “If and when it's not that bad, we're more than prepared.”)
After Lively's introduction, other stars spoke about their own experiences. In an Instagram video from December 2024, Kate Beckinsale She remembered the time she was working on a project and was called names After raising concerns About working with a costar. Beckinsale also alleged that she was mistreated by a member of her team. Abigail Breslin also Lively defended his lawsuit After her allegations against the former actor Aaron Eckhart Announced in 2023.
Many stars are connected And it ends with us The group also has Come forward to support Lively. Costar Jenny Slate “The attack on Blake is dark, disturbing, and completely threatening,” the author said. Colin Hoover Lively said to “Never change.”
