- Blake Lively has sued her ‘It Ends with Us’ costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment.
- Lively said Baldoni, who also directed the film, tried to damage her reputation.
- Baldoni’s lawyer told TMZ Lively sued him to “fix her negative reputation.”
Blake Lively sued her “It Ends with Us” costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment, retaliation, and coordinating attempts to damage her reputation.
The hype around “It Ends with Us” was intense ahead of the film’s August release, but much of the attention focused on the working relationship between its stars, Lively and Baldoni.
Lively played Lily Bloom, and Baldoni played Ryle Kincaid. Baldoni also directed the film, and his company, Wayfarer Studios, produced it.
Lively said in the lawsuit, obtained by Business Insider, that she attended an “all hands” meeting with Baldoni and “It Ends with Us” producer Jamey Heath during filming to address the “hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the Film.” Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, also attended the meeting.
“Ms. Lively was forced to address concerns about Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath’s misconduct with them directly, and began doing so months before filming began,” according to Lively’s lawsuit. “The concerns she raised were not only for herself, but for the other female cast and crew, some of whom had also spoken up.”
The meeting ended with all parties agreeing to a code of conduct for on-set behavior, including “no more showing nude videos or images of women, including the producer’s wife,” to Lively or her employees. The agreement also required “no more mention of Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath’s previous ‘pornography addiction’ or BL’s lack of pornography consumption to BL or to other crew members.”
Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images
Lively says in the lawsuit that another issue arose between her and Baldoni after filming due to differing marketing strategies. Lively adhered to a “marketing plan” that focused on her character’s “strength and resilience as opposed to describing the film as a story about domestic violence.”
Baldoni, however, “abruptly” switched marketing strategies before the film and focused on the domestic violence aspect, according to the lawsuit.
During the film’s press tour, social media users criticized Lively’s lighthearted marketing approach, which led to a wave of backlash. In contrast, fans sided with Baldoni’s approach and he emerged relatively unscathed by the fallout.
Lively said in the lawsuit that Baldoni and his team engaged in “social manipulation” to “destroy” her reputation through a “sophisticated press and digital plan in retaliation for Ms. Lively exercising her legally protected right to speak up about their misconduct on the set, with the additional objective of intimidating her and anyone else from revealing in public what actually occurred.”
The lawsuit included a series of text messages, including some between Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan. Abel is an attorney for Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios. Nathan is a crisis communications specialist for The Agency Group PR LLC, which Baldoni retained in early August.
In one message shared with Business Insider by a representative for Lively, Abel wrote to Nathan that Baldoni “wants to feel like she can be buried,” referring to Lively.
John Nacion/Getty Images
Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, said in a statement that claims made in Lively’s lawsuit were “categorically false.”
“It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation, which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions,” the statement said.
The statement added: “These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.”
Freedman’s statement said Wayfarer Studios decided to hire Nathan before the film’s marketing campaign “due to the multiple demands and threats made by Ms. Lively during production which included her threatening to not show up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release, if her demands were not met.”
A representative for Lively referred BI to a statement shared with The New York Times on Saturday.
“I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted,” the statement said.
She also told the outlet that neither she nor her representatives spread negative stories about Baldoni or Wayfarer Studios.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
