Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni are embroiled in a legal dispute involving allegations during the filming of It Ends With Us. The conflict between the two continues to escalate due to their competing lawsuits, as each presents different accounts of events. In New York, Lively filed a lawsuit accusing Baldoni and his team of sexual harassment and deliberately damaging her reputation. As a response to the lawsuit, Baloni launched a counter-lawsuit, targeting The New York Times for its alleged role as they had also broken the story.
Competing Lawsuits
In Justin Baldoni’s lawsuit, he alleges that the publication’s reporters unfairly collaborated with Blake Lively to ruin his reputation. At the same time, he disregards evidence that contradicts her claims. However, the publication denied Baldoni’s allegations and defended its reporting. In a statement, they assert that the original story was thoroughly researched and presented responsibly.
Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni and his team has several of the same allegations found in her civil rights complaint filed last December in California. Specifically, the lawsuit seeks compensatory damages consisting of lost wages and compensation for mental pain and anguish. Surprisingly, Lively’s lawsuit doesn’t include any specific monetary amount for these damages.
Justin Baldoni v. The New York Times
First reported by Variety, Justin Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times for alleged libel and fraud. Moreover, Baldoni accuses the Times of failing to provide his team sufficient time to respond to Blake Lively’s allegations and selectively presenting altered communications. He believes that the publication deliberately stripped these communications of essential context, resulting in a misleading narrative. He later filed the lawsuit to address perceived injustices and is willing defend his reputation against these numerous allegations.
The New York Times issued a statement responding to Baldoni’s lawsuit to BBC News. In the statement, the publication defended the thoroughness and accuracy of its reporting. Additionally, they stated that their article was based on a meticulous review of original documents comprising thousands of pages. These original documents include text messages and emails, which the publication quoted accurately and extensively.
Furthermore, they stated how they allowed Baldoni to be heard by publishing Baldoni’s team’s full statement to Lively. After the allegations were published, his talent agency severed ties with him. As a result, Baldoni is seeking a jury trial and an additional $250 million in damages against The New York Times. Baldoni’s Lawyer, Bryan Freedom, also made a statement to CBS News, accusing the publication of a doing a smear campaign to boost Blake Lively’s public image.
Smear Campaigns
Notably, Baldoni’s lawsuit shares similarities to Lively’s lawsuit by referencing the same text messages and communications. During the lawsuit, she accused Justin Baldoni’s team of orchestrating a social media campaign and using these communications to damage her reputation. According to Lively, this deliberate attack on her public image occurred after a meeting addressing her concerns. This meeting had her and other stars discuss the repetitive sexual harassment and disturbing behavior that happened on set.
Lively also presented thirty specific demands to address the alleged misconduct to ensure the film’s production could continue. These demands included restrictions on describing genitalia while on set and avoiding additional intimate scenes beyond those Lively had approved in the script. To damage her reputation, she accused Baldoni and his film studio, Wayfarer, of orchestrating a multi-faceted smear campaign. This plan involved social media manipulation, leveraging relationships with journalists to push specific narratives and other harmful tactics.
Baldoni’s legal team denied these allegations and characterized them as “category false”, then provided context for their actions. According to his legal team, they hired a crisis manager to deter Lively from disrupting the film’s production as she threatened to do so if her demands weren’t met. As of now, BBC News hasn’t heard any additional comments on the matter from either Lively, Baldoni, or The New York Times.
Consequences of the Dispute
Several Hollywood stars, including America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, and Alexis Bledel have publicly supported Blake Lively. Co-starring with her since the 2005 film, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, the three actresses issued a joint statement on Instagram expressing their solidarity. Praising her courage in advocating for a safe workplace during filming. In addition to these Hollywood Stars, It Ends With Us author, Colleen Hoover, expressed her support for Lively, stating how kind and welcoming she is in their interactions.
The global non-profit organization, Vital Voices, centering on women’s empowerment, would rescind the women’s solidarity honor that Baldoni received earlier in December. In a statement, the organization explained its actions, stating that the allegations against Baldoni opposed its values. Additionally, the co-host of Baldoni’s podcast, The Man Enough, announced her departure from the show. Specifically, the podcast aimed to create safe places for exploring issues, such as masculinity and mental health, but where it’ll go from here is undetermined.
