Justin Baldoni's team has released unedited footage from the set of “It Ends With Us” that they claim refutes Blake Lively's sexual harassment accusations.
After submitting a $400 million lawsuit Against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, Baldoni's video — which was shared by his attorney, Brian Friedman, and obtained by Fox News Digital — allegedly addresses the actress' allegations about a slow-dance scene.
Lively alleged that Baldoni “leaned forward and slowly dragged his lips from her ear to the bottom of her neck while saying, 'It smells so good,'” while filming a slow dance montage scene, according to her Dec. 20 sexual harassment filing obtained by Fox Digital News. “When Ms. Lively later objected to the behavior, Mr. Baldoni’s response was: ‘I’m not even attracted to you.’”
However, Baldoni insisted that the comment was made in relation to Lively's confession about her spray tan.
Justin Baldoni has released unedited footage from the set of “It Ends With Us.” (Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
Watch: Justin Baldoni releases unedited footage of “It Ends With Us” featuring Blake Lively
Throughout the video, roughly 10 minutes of raw footage, Baldoni directs the scene while Lively engages him in conversation because she says it's “more romantic” than just staring at each other.
As Baldoni hugged Lively's neck, the actor jokingly asked her, “Am I going to grow a beard on you today?” She laughed and said, “Maybe I'll put a spray tan on you.”
Baldoni then said, “It smells good,” to which Lively replied, “Well, it doesn't. It's my body makeup.”
“The following videos taken on May 23, 2023 clearly refute Ms. Lively’s characterization of his behavior,” a statement shared at the beginning of the video stated. “The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to each other. It is clear that both actors conduct themselves well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism.”
“These are the three shots that were filmed from the sequence.”
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively are seen on the set of “It Ends with Us” on January 12, 2024. (Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
“The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to each other. It is clear that both actors conduct themselves well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism.”
Lively's legal team claimed the unedited video is “conclusive evidence” and “supports” her allegations of sexual harassment.
“Justin Baldoni and his attorney may hope that this latest stunt will outweigh the damaging evidence against him, but the video itself is damning. Every frame of the footage posted verbatim confirms what Ms. Lively described in Paragraph 48 of her complaint,” Lively's legal team said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. . “The video shows Mr. Baldoni repeatedly leaning toward Ms. Lively, trying to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth on her neck, brushing her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smelled, and talking to her out of character.
“Every moment of this was improvised by Mr. Baldoni without any prior discussion or approval, and without the presence of the intimacy coordinator. Mr. Baldoni was not only Ms. Lively's co-star, but he was also the director, studio head, and Ms. Lively's assistant boss.”
They added: “The video shows Ms. Lively leaning away and repeatedly asking the characters to just talk. Any woman who has been touched inappropriately in the workplace will recognize Ms. Lively's discomfort. They will recognize her attempts at sarcasm to try to deflect attention. Unwanted touching should not be done to any A woman has to take defensive measures to avoid being touched by her employer without her consent.
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively will film “It Ends With Us” in 2023 and 2024. (Getty Images)
“This matter is being litigated in federal court. Releasing this video to the media, rather than submitting it as evidence in court, is another example of an unethical attempt to manipulate the public. It is also a continuation of a campaign of harassment and retaliation. While they focus on misleading media narratives, we focus on legal process, and we are continuing our efforts to demand that Mr. Baldoni and his associates respond in court, under oath, and not through manufactured media stunts.”
“Any woman who has been touched inappropriately in the workplace will recognize Ms. Lively's discomfort. They will acknowledge her reckless attempts to try to deflect unwanted touching.”
Vivid detailed allegations of sexual harassmentRetaliation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and more were filed by Baldoni and film producer Jami Heath in a complaint first filed with the California Department of Civil Rights and later in federal court.
Some of the issues that were allegedly addressed in an “all-hands” meeting before filming began included no more showing Lively nude videos or photos of women, no mention of Baldoni's previous “pornography addiction,” and no further discussions about his experiences. Personality with sex. No more descriptions of their genitals, no more adding sex scenes outside of the original script, no more discussions about Lively's weight or dead father, and more.
However, Baldoni insisted that Lively “falsely” accused him in an attempt to repair her reputation following the fallout from the film's press tour after she took control of the film.
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Blake Lively accused Justin Baldoni of sexual harassment. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
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Baldoni's legal team She claimed that Lively had no evidence of an intentional smear campaign, and instead worked to repair her reputation by accusing the actress and others of sexual harassment.
Lively “could not tolerate her publicly tarnished image for even a moment, and she also could not accept that it was entirely of her own doing,” the lawsuit said. “She needed a scapegoat. Instead of acknowledging and taking responsibility for her mishaps, she chose to blame the plaintiffs in a malicious, public and inexcusable manner.”
“When she and Reynolds were unable to force Baldoni and Wayfarer to read a statement she and her representatives had prepared, blackmailing them into ‘taking responsibility’ in defense of Lively’s actions, she waited for months, preparing to publicly attack Baldoni with the false claim that he had sexually harassed her.”
Justin Baldoni has sued Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds for civil racketeering, defamation, and more. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
Lively's team criticized Baldoni's lawsuit in a statement.
“This latest lawsuit filed by Justin Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and its partners is another chapter in the abuser’s playbook,” the statement provided by Lively’s legal team read. “This is an old story: A woman speaks out with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser tries to turn the tables on the victim. This is what experts call DARVO. Denial. Attack. Victim-offender reversal.”
The statement continued in part: “Their response to sexual harassment claims: She wanted it, and it's her fault. Their justifications for why this happened to her: Look what she was wearing. In short, while the victim focuses on the assault, the attacker focuses on the victim. The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, It does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively's complaint, and it will fail.
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