The drama surrounding It Ends With Us has escalated, with actor-director Justin Baldoni filing a $400 million lawsuit against co-star Blake Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, publicist Leslie Sloane, and her PR firm, Vision PR.
Baldoni filed the lawsuit on January 16 in the Southern District of New York, accusing the defendants of trying to take control of the film. Along with producer Jamey Heath and publicists Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan, Baldoni alleges civil extortion, defamation, false light invasion of privacy, breach of good faith, and interference with contracts, as reported by PEOPLE.
Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, made a strong statement, accusing Lively and her team of deception. “This lawsuit is based on solid evidence showing Blake Lively and her team’s attempt to ruin Justin Baldoni and his team by spreading edited and false information to the media,” Freedman said.
He continued, “We have all the text messages, emails, video footage, and other documents that show the truth. This is a fight Lively will regret.”
Freedman also accused Lively’s team of damaging reputations for selfish reasons and manipulating the media before taking legal action. “We know the truth, and now the public does too,” he added. “Documents don’t lie.”
This lawsuit follows Lively’s initial complaint filed in December, where she accused Baldoni of causing her “grief, fear, trauma, and anxiety” during the production of It Ends With Us. Lively claimed Baldoni sexually harassed her on set and led a smear campaign against her, including comments about her post-baby body and questions about her sex life with Reynolds.
Her lawsuit mentioned a meeting with key figures, including Lively, Baldoni, and Reynolds, to address these claims before filming could continue.
In response to Lively’s allegations, Baldoni had hinted at his lawsuit earlier, saying they wanted the truth out and the public to see the evidence. This new lawsuit also follows Baldoni’s libel suit against The New York Times, where he accused the paper of using selective and altered information in an article about Lively’s claims.
In the article, Lively said she hoped her legal action would reveal the tactics used to harm people who speak out about misconduct and help protect others.
