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Days after the release of It Ends With Us last August, Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Tony Vinciquerra issued a highly unusual statement to The Hollywood Reporter praising Blake Lively, who at that very moment was being destroyed on social media over reports of a power struggle with her director and co-star Justin Baldoni and the way she promoted the movie. Notably, there was zero mention of Baldoni or his company, Wayfarer Studios, which had brought on Sony to market and distribute their adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s best-selling novel about a woman caught up in an intertwining tale of new love and domestic abuse.

“Blake’s passion and commitment to advancing the conversation around domestic violence is commendable. We love working with Blake, and we want to do 12 more movies with her,” said Vinciquerra, who has since retired. He likewise praised Hoover and the other women involved in the film.

“When the world hands you lemons, make lemonade,” they say. But what happens when Hollywood hands you a full-on legal battle, an explosive cover story, and a tug-of-war over reputations? For Blake Lively, the answer is simple: You don’t just sit back and hope it blows over. You have to fight back!

Ryan Reynolds’ wife didn’t hold back a single punch when she called out The Hollywood Reporter for serving up a “sexist trope” in their cover story about her legal battle with Justin Baldoni. A new lawsuit filed by Lively claims her time on set wasn’t just filled with awkward silences and minor disagreements—no, it was steeped in “invasive, unwelcome, unprofessional, and sexually inappropriate behavior.”

Blake Lively with Ryan Reynolds | Credit: Instagram / @vancityreynolds

And as if that wasn’t enough to stir the pot, the THR cover story seems to have only poured gasoline on the fire.

SmackDown returned to our screens with The Final Boss, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson making his comeback. During his return, he stood in front of Cody Rhodes in the middle of the ring, making bold claims about how he is on the board of Tko, the Tko that owns WWE. Founded by Ari Emanuel and Vince McMahon, Tko is part of a merger between WWE and Zuffa, LLC – the parent company of UFC.

Dwayne Johnson | Credits: WWE

While boasting and trash-talking are all part of the game, Dwayne Johnson’s statements to Cody Rhodes may be seen in bad light, especially since it mentions one of the most controversial personalities right now – Ari Emanuel.

What did Dwayne Johnson say about Ari Emanuel? Dwayne Johnson and Cody Rhodes on SmackDown | Credits: WWE

When Dwayne Johnson, the Final Boss, stood in front of Cody Rhodes at SmackDown, he had a lot to say to his former WrestleMania opponent.

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Jenny Slate has entered the chat. Or, at least, she might do that very soon.

The alarming details of Blake Lively’s amended complaint against Justin Baldoni include a mention that she was not the only person on the set who had major issues during production.

A new report sheds light on an alleged complaint that Jenny Slate filed during It Ends With Us.

She may be willing to testify on Lively’s behalf when this ugly legal battle goes to trial. What does she have to say?

Jenny Slate attends the “It Ends With Us” New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on August 06, 2024. (Photo Credit: Cindy Ord/Getty Images) Did Jenny Slate file a complaint alongside Blake Lively’s?

On Tuesday, February 18, Blake Lively’s legal team filed an amended complaint. In addition to other harrowing details, the filing added that two other actresses...

Jenny Slate filed a complaint against Justin Baldoni’s producing partner, Jamey Heath, after he allegedly made several comments about motherhood that left the actress feeling uncomfortable. The details were revealed in a new story from The Hollywood Reporter that questions whether the dispute that’s erupted between It Ends With Us co-stars Baldoni and Blake Lively could be partly linked to misunderstandings over cultural and religious norms.

Both Baldoni and Heath are members of the Baha’i faith, as is Steve Sarowitz, the billionaire businessman who invested in their production company,...

In her recently amended lawsuit, Blake Lively said that two other women on the set of It Ends With Us lodged complaints against Justin Baldoni and other members of his team. It appears that one of those women was Jenny Slate.

The 42-year-old actress appeared alongside Blake and Justin in the movie as Allysa, Lily’s best friend and Ryle’s sister.

A new report suggested that Jenny was one of the actresses who complained about her experience on set. The complaint allegedly had to do with Justin‘s partner Jamey Heath, who is the president of their production company Wayfarer.

Keep reading to find out more…

According to reporting by The Hollywood Reporter, Jenny was uncomfortable with the way that Jamey interacted with her while discussing the apartment she was renting while filming.

She was reportedly unhappy with the apartment she had initially rented but felt stuck there due to a large security deposit.

Throughout the entire production of It Ends With Us, a persistent and peculiar rumor circulated on the set. According to this rumor, Justin Baldoni and It Ends With Us author Colleen Hoover shared a spiritual bond. Both were supposedly members of a small, obscure Iranian religious community known as Baha’i. It was this shared faith — or so the rumor went — that helped the 41-year-old director initially secure the rights to It Ends With Us.

None of that was true. Hoover grew up in a small town in Texas filled with Southern Baptists, and a source close to the novelist insists she has never been part of the Baha’i community. Nor was there anything spiritual about the way in which the rights to Hoover’s book were secured. It was Hoover’s former editor turned literary agent named Johanna Castillo who brokered the rights agreement of It Ends With Us with Baldoni.

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds’ publicist Leslie Sloane is standing strongly with her clients against Justin Baldoni’s alleged “bizarre and abusive practices,” but the Vision PR boss wants herself and her company dropped from the legal battle between the It Ends With Us stars.

“The Wayfarer Parties dragged Leslie Sloane and Vision PR, Inc. into the instant litigation as a smoke and mirrors exercise to distract from their own sexual harassment and systematic retaliation,” asserts an accompanying memo to a motion to dismiss Sloane and Vision PR from the latest version of Baldoni’s $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit filed today in federal court.

“The Amended Complaint does not — and cannot — identify anything Ms. Sloane did that comes anywhere close to the damning communications between Baldoni and his own publicists concerning an explicit campaign to ‘destroy’ and ‘bury’ the woman employee who accused him of sexual harassment,” the document...

Hollywood productions are often shrouded in glitz and glamour, but behind the scenes, actors sometimes face situations that test their comfort and boundaries. Blake Lively, known for her poised performances and strong on-screen presence, has recently found herself at the center of controversy surrounding the filming of It Ends With Us.

The highly anticipated adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel has been a topic of excitement among fans, but Lively’s experience on set tells a different story. The actress has spoken out about an uncomfortable and intrusive encounter during filming, raising concerns about professionalism and safety in the industry.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in It End With Us | Credits: Sony Pictures Releasing

Her allegations have sparked discussions on the treatment of actors, especially women, in Hollywood, and whether enough is being done to protect their dignity on set. What started as excitement for a film adaptation has...

Sony’s It Ends With Us adapted Colleen Hoover’s powerful story about domestic violence and a resilient woman, but drama between stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni behind the scenes and afterwards has lingered beyond the film’s release in theaters. Arriving to the big screen last August and later heading to streaming on Netflix in December 2024, the Justin-Baldoni-directed film drew many moviegoers, though some didn’t realize what the story was fully about.

Tensions mainly lie between the film’s costars — Lively, who portrays main character Lily Bloom, and Baldoni, who also stars as Ryle, the abusive husband of Lily, in addition to directing the film with a script from Christy Hall. During press for the film, it became clear that Baldoni and Lively were maintaining distance from each other, and even on the red carpet at the New York premiere, they didn’t take photos together.

Late...

Blake Lively amended her complaint against her “It Ends With Us” co-star/director Justin Baldoni late Tuesday night, detailing similar alleged experiences from two of her female castmates as well as adding a defamation claim.

In the 141-page filing obtained by TheWrap, Lively says multiple other women on set voiced their concerns to Sony and eventually Wayfarer and are willing to testify at trial. That trial is currently set to begin in March 2026.

“Ms. Lively was not alone in complaining about Mr. Baldoni and raised her

concerns contemporaneously as they arose in 2023, not in connection with some imagined power play for control of the film in 2024,” per the court documents. “The experiences of Ms. Lively and others were documented at the time they occurred starting in May of 2023. Importantly, and contrary to the entire narrative Defendants have invented, Mr. Baldoni acknowledged the complaints in writing at the time.”

“There is...

Blake Lively Legal Battle ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s It Ends With Us saga has thickened with the latest 163-page amended complaint from the camp of Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. This is in reply to Baldoni’s amended complaint, filed earlier, alleging The New York Times’ collusion with Lively to vilify his reputation, citing the metadata.

Lively’s complaint, though expansive, presents more of the same case with a few exceptions. The filings also place publicist Jade Wallace as another defendant, adding him next to Baldoni, Jamie Heath, Jennifer Abel, Melissa Nathan, and Steve Sarowitz. Notably, though Wallace was left out of the Gossip Girl alum’s original lawsuit, he was named in her Crd complaint, for which he sued her for defamation.

The second major revelation addressed in the Lively/Reynolds party raises the intensity of alleged sexual misconduct on the part of Baldoni.

Blake Lively’s legal battle with her It Ends With Us director and co-star took a new turn late Tuesday night when she filed an amended complaint alleging that two other actresses on the set of the film are prepared to testify as to their own uncomfortable experiences with Justin Baldoni or with his Wayfarer Studios partner Jamey Heath.

The suit does not name the actresses, quote directly from their texts or include screen shots, out of concern that they may be exposed to the same sort of cyberbullying and threats Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, claim they have endured, along with others associated with the ongoing saga.

Sources indicate the two women are actresses Jenny Slate and Isabela Ferrer, who could not immediately be reached for comment. Slate is a veteran comic and actress known for roles in Parks and Recreation and Everything Everywhere All at Once. Ferrer...

Blake Lively filed an amendment to her complaint on Tuesday (February 18).

The 37-year-old actress is in the midst of a legal battle with her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, with her original complaint filed back in December.

In the latest amendment, it is revealed that Blake wasn’t the only woman on set that was made uncomfortable by Justin and producer Jamey Heath.

Keep reading to find out more…

“The amended complaint details the corroboration that backs up Blake’s original sexual harassment and retaliation concerns, including that (1) Justin Baldoni and Jamey Heath made other women uncomfortable on set; and (2) other women confided in Blake about their discomfort and fear of coming forward, and their concern about the current public vitriol,” a spokesperson for Blake shared.

“The new filing also details that a Sony representative spoke to Baldoni about the concerns, and that Baldoni responded, including...

With minutes to spare before a court-imposed deadline of midnight Et Tuesday, lawyers for Blake Lively have just filed an amended complaint against Justin Baldoni in her sexual harassment and smear campaign lawsuit against her It Ends With Us co-star and director.

In a legal and cultural landscape where the blast radius from this battle was already pretty large, things just got a whole lot bigger, with more women cited in the amendment.

Also, with a settlement nowhere in sight, mediation rejected by all sides and contested telecom subpoenas, this saga of alleged misconduct, astroturfing and career crash-and-burning now finds Lively adding a defamation claim and civil conspiracy in her 141-page Fac (First Amended Complaint). There are also two new but not unexpected defendants in crisis PR firm Street Relations and its founder Jed Wallace.

Other Women

Perhaps more importantly, this time, in a complaint 48 pages longer than the New...

Amid a very public weekend for Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, attorneys for Justin Baldoni are doing everything they can to quash a series of subpoenas to telecom companies and others from the power couple to look at calls, texts, emails and maybe anything else they can get their eyes on in the sprawling hostility between the It Ends With Us stars.

Efforts that the Gossip Girl vet, the Deadpool lead and their lawyers want to give no quarter to in this very 21st century version of who-said-what-when? In a case(s) that seems to spin out of control culturally and sometimes legally ever since Lively submitted her sexual harassment and alleged “astroturfing” retaliation compliant with California’s Civil Rights department on December 20 and the subsequent multi-million dollar lawsuits, Lively and Reynolds’ legal team issued subpoenas on February 12 to the likes of AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, as well as AOL,...

So, have you ever noticed how life has a knack for throwing curveballs? Like when you think you’ve got it all figured out, only to find out that the pieces don’t fit as neatly as you’d hoped. We all love a good behind-the-scenes drama, but there are some stories that even Hollywood couldn’t write better.

The unfolding saga between Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively, and a handful of other industry players has become the stuff of gossip columns. But sometimes, the most significant characters in a tale aren’t always the ones with their names in the headlines.

Justin Baldoni in It Ends with Us | Credits: Sony Pictures

One of the lesser-known, yet pivotal, figures in this story is Liz Plank—someone who was once very much on Baldoni’s side. However, we find that her allegiances have shifted surprisingly. In fact, it’s not just a simple case of picking sides.

A throwback-filled Q&a with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in the middle of SNL50: The Anniversary Special suddenly felt very 2025 tonight.

As the former castmates joked with the A-lister crowd in Studio8H, and Tim Meadows and Quinta Brunson got a Sade reference in there, the news that is captivating Hollywood stood right up at Lorne Michaels’ celebration.

Near the front of the star-powered audience bit, a tuxedo-clad Ryan Reynolds rose to ask a question of the 30 Rock and Parks & Recreation stars. With his in-the-news spouse Blake Lively looking on, the Deadpool actor stood up to a “How’s it going?”

That’s when Reynolds turned on the comedy chops and innocently replied: “Great. Why, what have you heard?”

Needless to say, with Lively’s multi-lawsuit war with It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni over what occurred during production of the film and the alleged online smear campaign that followed,...

You can’t judge a book by its cover, but you can certainly judge a story by its plot twists. If that were a Hollywood adage, it might sum up the drama brewing between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni—two stars whose professional relationship has descended into a tangled mess of legal wrangling, accusations, and public mudslinging.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in It Ends With Us | Credits: Sony Pictures

What started as a typical Hollywood project—a film based on It Ends with Us—has somehow snowballed into a bitter feud that seems to keep feeding on itself. The legal drama between Lively and Baldoni is as messy as it gets, but honestly, it makes you wonder: how much is too much when it comes to fame, ego, and pride?

Well, this situation feels like watching a car crash in slow motion. You know it’s coming, you can’t look away,...

Justin Baldoni asked a judge on Friday to prevent Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds from accessing years of his phone and text records, which he said could reveal location data and his web browser history.

In a letter to the court, Baldoni’s lawyer Mitchell Schuster argued that Lively’s subpoenas are “flagrantly overbroad.”

“It is hard to overstate how broad, invasive, and atypical these Subpoenas truly are,” Schuster wrote. “This is civil litigation, not a criminal prosecution, and (Lively and Reynolds) are not the FBI.”

Lively’s lawyers submitted subpoenas earlier this week to AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. They are seeking further evidence to bolster their claim that Baldoni, her director and co-star in “It Ends With Us,” engaged in an unlawful smear campaign against her in retaliation for her sexual harassment complaint.

Responding to Baldoni’s objections, a Lively spokesperson said Friday: “If they have so many receipts...

Power broker and star agent Ari Emanuel is “ride or die” for Team Lively.

The Endeavor CEO is breaking down why he supports Blake Lively in her legal and reputational battle against her It Ends With Us director and co-star Justin Baldoni.

Emanuel was asked about the clash by Stephen Dubner at the Freakonomics Radio Live show Thursday night at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles.

“It is a fucked up, bad situation with what Bologna … Baldoni … whatever his name is … is doing,” Emanuel said.

Dubner pointed out that Baldoni was previously a client of Emanuel’s WME agency (where Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds are still represented).

“Until I fired him,” Emanuel said. “It’s not really fair. I’ve known Ryan and Blake for over a decade. They’re really incredible people. In Hollywood, they have been incredibly successful. People work with them, they’ve never...

Endeavor and Tko CEO Ari Emanuel entered the conversation surrounding Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s never-ending “It Ends With Us” drama on Thursday night, bluntly calling it “a f–ked up” situation — on Baldoni’s end, at least.

While speaking with Stephen Dubner at the Freakonomics Radio Live show at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, the Hollywood executive opened up about his decision to fire the actor/director as a client, referring to him as Justin “Bologna” in the process.

“It’s not really fair. I’ve known Ryan [Reynolds] and Blake for over a decade. They’re really incredible people,” he said. “In Hollywood, they have been incredibly successful. People work with them, they’ve never had any bad mojo out there or treated people badly. They are charitable — we help them with their foundation — they’ve given tons of money away.”

“If what is alleged...

Ari Emanuel has long been known to consider loyalty a top virtue and last night the Endeavor CEO came out unabashedly for Team Blake in the convoluted and sprawling conflict between the It Ends With Us star, Ryan Reynolds and former WME client Justin Baldoni.

“I am a ride or die, and they’re good people.”

“I’ve known Ryan and Blake for over a decade,” Emanuel said at a taping of the Freakonomics Radio Live show Thursday night. “They’re really incredible people,” he added. “In Hollywood, they have been incredibly successful. People work with them, they’ve never had any bad mojo out there or treated people badly. They are charitable – we help them with their foundation – they’ve given tons of money away.”

Franchise superstar Reynolds signed with WME in 2014, with Gossip Girl alum Lively inking with the agency in 2015. Baldoni began being represented by WME in...

Is Blake Lively Seeking Justin Baldoni’s Phone Records? (Photo Credit – Koimoi)

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s never-ending legal battle is turning bitter with each passing day. This time, the actress’ lawyers have demanded access to his phone records, further intensifying the already heated dispute.

Blake Lively vs Justin Baldoni: The Legal Battle

The conflict began when Blake accused Justin of s**ual harassment and fostering a hostile work environment on the set of It Ends With Us while also alleging that he and his team orchestrated a campaign to tarnish her reputation.

Justin, however, has fiercely denied the allegations and hit back with a $400 million countersuit against Blake and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of attempting to destroy his career.

Trending It Ends With Us Author Colleen Hoover Cuts Ties With Blake Lively Amid Explosive Legal Drama with Co-Star Justin Baldoni

Kanye West & Bianca Censori’s Shocking...

Blake Lively’s legal team has issued subpoenas to crisis PR firm consultant Jed Wallace, as well as AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and multiple other entities, in search of more evidence of Justin Baldoni’s alleged smear campaign against her.

“Ms. Lively has initiated discovery that will expose the people, tactics and methods that have worked to ‘destroy’ and ‘bury’ her reputation and family over the past year,” Lively’s attorneys Mike Gottlieb and Esra Hudson said in a statement. “We will now receive all of the ‘receipts’ that, unsurprisingly, are nowhere to be found on Mr. [Bryan] Freedman’s website, and like Ms. Lively, those ‘receipts’ will have their day in court.” (Freedman is Baldoni’s lawyer, who created a public website that consists of Baldoni’s amended lawsuit against Blake and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.)

The subpoenas also come a week after Lively’s legal team dropped a request in Texas to depose Wallace,...

Blake Lively’s lawyers sent a subpoena on Wednesday for Justin Baldoni’s phone records, as they seek to buttress their allegation that he launched a smear campaign against her.

Lively is suing her “It Ends With Us” director and co-star, alleging that he and his publicists and operatives trashed her online in retaliation for her complaints of sexual harassment on set.

Lively’s lawyers already have voluminous text messages from the phone of Jennifer Abel, one of Baldoni’s publicists. Those messages include discussion of trying to “bury” and “destroy” Lively, but may not tell the full story of how such an effort could have been carried out.

Lively’s attorneys sent subpoenas to three phone carriers — AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile — seeking records pertaining to Baldoni, producer Jamey Heath and billionaire Wayfarer Studios co-founder Steve Sarowitz. The subpoenas also seek the phone records of Abel and publicist Melissa Nathan.

There have been many questions raised throughout the coverage of the Justin Baldoni-Blake Lively lawsuits. With all the information that is coming out, many have been curious about certain pieces of information and decisions that were taken by both parties over the months, becoming a cause for speculation.

Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively in It Ends With Us | Credits: Sony Pictures Releasing

These questions have not been limited to Lively and Baldoni, as parties close to them have also been brought into the situation in quite interesting manners. From Taylor Swift to Ryan Reynolds, Colleen Hoover, and even journalist Kjersti Flaa, no one has been exempt from the wrath.

Amid this, one name very close to Baldoni switched sides and joined Lively’s team—Liz Plank. This confused many, considering how closely Plank and Baldoni had worked together for four years. However, the explanation for the same may not be very complicated.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ordered the attorneys in the legal standoff between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni on Monday to comply with a federal court rule barring lawyers from making statements to the press that could prejudice the case.

The court issued the order after Bryan Freedman, the attorney for Justin Baldoni and the studio that produced It Ends With Us, claimed he was facing a potential gag order proposed by Lively’s legal team. However, Michael Gottlieb, representing the actress, said he was not seeking a full gag order but rather a court order to comply with existing rules dictating trial publicity.

As evidence of the need for the order, Gottlieb pointed to statements Freedman had made in the press accusing Lively of a pattern of bullying and saying that he had the “receipts” that would prove the case in publications including People and on the Megyn Kelly Show.

Justin Baldoni has filed an amended counterclaim that consolidates Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, The New York Times and others as defendants, saying the “It Ends With Us” star and her PR reps colluded with the newspaper for months to smear the director after a protracted battle over control of the movie turned hostile.

Baldoni published his 244-counterclaim, along with a timeline, on a dedicated website on Saturday. The complaint, filed Friday in a New York federal court, includes dozens of texts and other messages between multiple parties, including several examples of friendly, respectful and collaborative missives between Lively and Baldoni, who points out that many were exchanged during the time when Lively later alleged she was sexually harassed.

Baldoni is seeking a $400,000,000 payout in compensatory damages, plus whatever the court may award for “mental pain and anguish and severe and

serious emotional distress.” The plaintiffs are Lively, Reynolds, their rep...

In the latest amid the ongoing legal saga between Blake Lively and her It Ends With Us costar Justin Baldoni, the actress and her husband Ryan Reynolds told a federal judge that they will move to dismiss Baldoni‘s defamation lawsuit.

According to Variety, the couple’s lawyers filed the notice Thursday in compliance with Judge Lewis Liman’s order, which lays out how the federal case will proceed.

Earlier this month, Baldoni filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, accusing her of trying to “destroy” him with false allegations of sexual misconduct.

In August, Justin Baldoni believed Pac-Man, the yellow, pellet-eating protagonist of the 1980s arcade game, could be the hero he needed to help change the messy narrative surrounding the release of It Ends With Us.

For weeks, rumors of a feud between director-star Baldoni and his co-star Blake Lively had dominated entertainment news headlines, and he was looking for a way to turn the page. According to a text he sent his PR team on Aug. 18, Baldoni suggested sharing the news that he would next direct a Pac-Man movie, something he hoped would help him “move towards the future.”

But Pac-Man, which Baldoni and his Wayfarer Studios were developing since 2022, may no longer be in his future. It is among at least a trio of projects that are now in doubt as friction with Lively turned from internet curiosity into a full-fledged legal war.

In recent days, sources close to...

When Is Justin Baldoni & Blake Lively’s It Ends With Us Battle Heading To Court? (Photo Credit – Koimoi)

The controversy surrounding It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is not slowing down—in fact, it’s only heating up. The escalating drama has been marked by accusations of misconduct and retaliatory campaigns, ensuing multiple high-stakes lawsuits that continue to dominate headlines.

Dispelling rumors that an out-of-court settlement might be forthcoming, it has now been confirmed that their legal battle will head to court. The case is set for trial in New York next year, further fueling the drama that has drawn public fascination and polarized opinions.

Judge Lewis Jeffrey Liman of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York has officially scheduled the trial for March 9, 2026. The lawsuit will address Lively’s claims of sexual harassment and allegations that Baldoni orchestrated a smear...

Among the movies of 2024, Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni starrer It Ends With Us was a major success. However, although the movie achieved huge box office success, this fame ended abruptly thanks to its leading cast members.

Both main stars initiated legal proceedings after Lively accused Baldoni of s*xual harassment when they worked together on the film set. In return, Baldoni and his team responded to these allegations through their own legal submissions.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in It Ends with Us | Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing

The controversy has deepened because new evidence, such as text and voice recordings emerged, leading to opposing claims about misconduct from each side.

Overview of Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively’s legal controversy Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in It Ends with Us | Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing

According to Blake Lively‘s complaint, Justin Baldoni and Wayfarer chief executive Jamey Heath were “invasive,...

In footage from the set of “It Ends With Us,” Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively engage in a polite, even friendly, discussion about how to show their characters falling in love. Should they kiss? Or is it more romantic for them to talk?

He smiles. She laughs. Yet, they were growing to despise each other.

She thought Baldoni — the co-star, director, and studio head — was overstepping her boundaries; he felt she couldn’t take direction. That simple interaction from May 2023 — which might in other circumstances have been marked down to “creative differences” — has flourished over the last month into an all-out legal war, leading to a civil rights complaint and four lawsuits (so far).

In this still-unfolding controversy, Baldoni and Lively are each primarily concerned with their public reputations. But the longer it goes on, the more each may need a clear legal win to secure vindication.

“Predominantly, these are...

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Blake Lively believes that Justin Baldoni just dug his own grave.

As most celebrity gossip followers know at this point, Blake Lively recently accused the actor of sexual harassment on the set It Ends With Us… alleging her co-star created a toxic work environment and also took part in a smear campaign against his colleague after the film’s release.

In response, Baldoni denied the allegations.

Then, lawyers for the the 40-year old filed a $400 million lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on January 16 on behalf of Baldoni, producer Jamey Heath, publicist Jennifer Abel and crisis publicist Melissa Nathan.

Blake Lively attends the 2024 Cfda Awards at American Museum of Natural History on October 28, 2024 in New York City. ((Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images))

Baldoni previously said Lively was “consistently unable to take direction” throughout the shooting of the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s book.

The director of this film,...

The conflict between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni started months ago while filming It Ends With Us. After production ended, Lively accused Baldoni of harassment, body shaming, creating uncomfortable romantic scenes, and harming her public image after the movie’s release.

For a while, things stayed quiet, but Lively later filed a legal complaint, sparking one of the biggest celebrity scandals of the year. This eventually led to a federal lawsuit. Recently, Baldoni responded with his own complaint, including a lawsuit against The Times.

Baldoni has now taken further legal action against Lively and Ryan Reynolds. Alongside his studio Wayfarer, CEO Jamey Heath, and PR representatives Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, he filed a lawsuit in New York federal court. The claims include extortion, defamation, breach of contract, and more, with Baldoni seeking at least $400 million in damages.

Related: Justin Baldoni’s Lawyer Says Ryan Reynolds Based ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’s...

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It Ends With Us?

More like… it’s just starting between them.

As you may have already read about, Blake Lively recently accused Justin Baldoni of sexual harassment on the set of their recent hit movie; claiming her co-star created a hostile work environment on the film’s set and later took part in a smear campaign against his colleague.

And now Baldoni has fired back.

It seems unlikely Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni will share the screen ever again. (Sony Pictures Releasing / courtesy Everett Collection)

Attorneys for the the 40-year old filed a $400 million lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on January 16 on behalf of Baldoni, producer Jamey Heath, publicist Jennifer Abel and crisis publicist Melissa Nathan.

Baldoni is now backing up his claim by releasing unedited footage from the set of It Ends With Us. He claims the 10 minutes of video refute Lively’s claims of sexual harassment.

While the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni legal battle heats up, what many don’t know is that Baldoni is already fighting another legal battle over rights. Justin Baldoni’s Wayfarer had struck a deal with former NBA superstar Craig Hodges to make a biographical documentary about him.

Justin Baldoni in It Ends With Us | Credits: Sony Pictures

Based on his 2017 book Long Shot: The Triumphs and Struggles of an NBA Freedom Fighter, the documentary was supposed to take a look at his struggles as one of the few Black men in the early 90s who took a stand for justice and faced repercussions for it.

The deal was signed in 2021, and while things seemed to go well at first, creative differences soon forced them to put a halt on it. Troubles arose when Hodges demanded the rights back to the project after Baldoni’s company decided to shelve the...

They say “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” but when the tables turn, it’s clear that fury isn’t exclusive to one side. As we dive deeper into the ongoing drama between Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively, and Ryan Reynolds, it’s impossible to ignore how the stakes have soared—fueled by lawsuits, accusations, and allegations of all sorts.

What started on set as creative differences has now spiraled into a fierce courtroom clash, as Baldoni fires back with a hefty $400 million lawsuit.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in It Ends with Us | Credits- Sony Pictures

As expected, the legal battle has now captured the attention of not only Hollywood but also the public.

Justin Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit against Blake Lively

It all started with Blake Lively’s lawsuit against Justin Baldoni, which hit the headlines last December when she accused the director of sexual harassment and...

The ongoing feud between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively has reached new levels, with the actor filing a $400 million lawsuit against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. Among the many complaints stated in the suit is that Reynolds based the character of Nicepool in Deadpool & Wolverine off of Baldoni in a deliberate attempt to mock the actor. But is there any legitimacy to the claim?

Sources told THR that while the character of Nicepool was created well before Baldoni and Lively had a falling out, the scenes weren’t filmed until near the end of principal photography. “It was all added post-strike,” said one knowledgeable source. Following the conclusion of the SAG-AFTRA strike, Deadpool & Wolverine wrapped up in January 2024. This coincided with a heated meeting between Baldoni, Reynolds, Lively, and producer Jamey Heath.

Related The Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni Situation: A Deep Dive Into One of the...

The tension between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni began months ago during the filming of It Ends With Us. After the movie finished, Lively accused Baldoni of harassment on set, body shaming, inappropriate romantic scenes, and damaging her public reputation after the film was released.

Things were quiet for a while, but later Lively filed a legal complaint, turning the situation into one of the biggest celebrity controversies of the year and eventually leading to a federal lawsuit. Recently, Baldoni filed his own complaint and lawsuit against The Times.

It seems Baldoni has also decided to take legal action against Lively & Ryan Reynolds. He, along with his film studio Wayfarer, CEO Jamey Heath, and PR reps Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, have filed a lawsuit in New York federal court. The lawsuit includes claims of extortion, defamation, breach of contract, and more, asking for at least $400 million in damages.

Bryan Freedman,...

Exclusive: With yet another week of more lawsuits in the ever increasing obloquy fray between It Ends With Us stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, the court of public opinion has proved as much of a field of operations as the state and federal dockets.

A front that Bryan Freedman is willing to concede to no rival.

“After my clients filed a comprehensive lawsuit packed with almost 200 pages of undeniable facts and documentary evidence which crushed their false allegations of a smear campaign by providing doctored communications to the New York Times, Blake and her legal team have just one heinous pivot left, and that is to double down on the revoltingly false sexual allegations against Mr. Baldoni,” the hard hitting and media savvy attorney told Deadline.

The Liner Freedman Taitelman + Cooley Llp co-founder was responding Saturday to the January 16 response from Lively’s Manatt, Phelps & Phillips attorneys and...

The director and star of hit summer romance It Ends With Us are facing off with lawsuits alleging sexual harassment and defamation

It Ends With Us should have been a success story. The long-awaited film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel, a tale of cyclical domestic violence, premiered in August to decent reviews and wide audience interest; it grossed $350m, against a $25m budget, despite a tide of press and social media speculation over an alleged rift between its director, Justin Baldoni, and its star, Blake Lively. Most of the ire was trained on Lively – for glossing over the subject of domestic violence with florals, for simultaneously promoting her haircare and alcohol lines, for being gruff with reporters in the past, while Baldoni, who played the abuser in the film, championed abuse survivors. But the movie was a hit, demonstrating the viability of female-led, mid-budget melodramas at the box office.

Blake Lively costarred with Justin Baldoni in the 2024 romantic drama It Ends With Us, based on the popular novel by Colleen Hoover. Baldoni also directed the movie. The film came out in August, but people have been talking about it more than ever over the past few months thanks to a heated public back and forth between Lively and Baldoni. I doubted whether we'd ever talk about this whole situation on this website, but now there's a Game of Thrones angle, so we're going in.

First, let's quickly summarize the drama up to this point: during the press tour for It Ends With Us, Blake Lively got a lot of flack for being awkward and kind of tone-deaf on the press trail, and a narrative started to form about her being unpleasant and difficult to work with. The winds shifted when Lively filed a complaint in the California Civil Rights...

Justin Baldoni is suing Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds over the It Ends With Us situation, asking for $400 million in damages. Candace Owens, who has shown interest in the case and largely sided with Baldoni, covered the lawsuit on her YouTube channel. Owens went after Taylor Swift, accusing her of playing a major role in Lively’s alleged attempt to take down Baldoni.

Candace Owens on her podcast | Credits: @candaceowens/YouTube

Baldoni claimed in his lawsuit that Lively took measures to gain control over the hit movie. The lawsuit includes several charges, including civil extortion and defamation. In addition to Lively and Reynolds, the suit also targets her publicist Leslie Sloane, and Sloane’s PR firm, Vision PR, Inc.

Candace Owens speculates Taylor Swift’s role in the Justin Baldoni-Blake Lively drama Taylor Swift in a still from Amsterdam | Credits: 20th Century Studio

Candace Owens shared her take on the...

Things have been pretty turbulent in the entertainment industry. First, Sean Diddy Combs and the uncovering of his alleged crimes; now, the Blake Lively and Baldoni drama, both of which don’t seem to be over. After suing the New York Times for trying to defame him, Baldoni has filed a lawsuit against Blake Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.

Candace Owens | Credit: YouTube / Candace Owens

As the ‘This Ends With Us‘ battle rages on, Candace Owens has some ‘insightful’ remarks to make about the situation. In her latest live interview, Owens cited the cases of Amber Heard and Johnny Depp and stated that Lively should resolve this as soon as possible!

Candace Owens claims Amber Heard was winning the war of public opinion, until one critical error Amber Heard and Johnny Depp in The Rum Diary | Credit: Hollywood Pictures

Candace Owens has always been fierce in her opinions. In her latest YouTube live,...

Blake Lively‘s legal team has a response for Justin Baldoni’s new lawsuit against the actress, saying it’s another chapter in the abuser playbook.

“This is an age-old story: A woman speaks up with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser attempts to turn the tables on the victim. This is what experts call Darvo. Deny. Attack. Reverse Victim Offender,” read a statement from Lively’s lawyers that was given to The Hollywood Reporter late Thursday afternoon.

Lively is represented by Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and Willkie Farr & Gallagher.

The rebuttal was issued hours after Baldoni filed a 179-page lawsuit in New York federal court against Lively, and her husband Ryan Reynolds, alongside two publicists, alleging extortion, defamation and claims related to breach of contract tied to the making and release of It Ends With Us.

The movie was directed by Baldoni, who stars alongside Lively.

The legal battle between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively in the aftermath of “It Ends With Us” expanded its blast zone Thursday morning, with a new lawsuit by Baldoni including text messages between Lively and Baldoni, her co-star and director. In the texts, Lively seemingly alludes to Taylor Swift as “one of her dragons.” The superstar is a friend of Lively.

In the lawsuit, filed against Lively and her husband, actor-producer Ryan Reynolds, on Thursday morning, Baldoni alleges that the couple hijacked the film “It Ends With Us,” and sought to wreck his public reputation with false allegations of sexual harassment. Baldoni is seeking $400 million in damages. Swift is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, nor is her name mentioned in the filing beyond a reference to “Taylor” in a text message sent by Baldoni to Lively.

Swift’s representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Half a century ago, a defining question of the Watergate scandal was, “What did the president know and when did he know it?” Today, a surprising question has emerged in the Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni legal saga: “What did Nicepool say, and when did he say it?”

On Tuesday, a letter from Baldoni attorney Bryan Freedman to Disney landed in the hands of the media. Freedman’s legal hold letter to Disney CEO Bob Iger and Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige — in which he addressed them as “Bob” and “Kevin” — asked the studio to preserve any documents regarding Baldoni and the creation of Nicepool, a minor character in Deadpool & Wolverine that internet sleuths (and Freedman himself) say star-writer-producer Ryan Reynolds used to mock Baldoni.

Disney and Marvel have not yet responded to Freedman, according to sources. It is unclear if the studio has even received the letter from the attorney,...

Summon the lawyers! After months of rumors, accusations, and disagreements about what happened between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively on the It Ends With Us set and beyond, Baldoni is taking the feud to another level by suing Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, for $400M. Baldoni, who directed and starred alongside Lively in the 2024 romantic drama, filed the lawsuit in New York on Thursday, alleging extortion, defamation, and claims related to a breach of contract, among other complaints. In Baldoni’s corner are his film studio, Wayfarer and its chief executive, Jamey Heath, and their public relations representatives, Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel.

The lawsuit names Leslie Sloane, Lively’s public relations representative at Vision PR, in addition to Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. Bryan Freedman, Baldoni’s lawyer, stated the lawsuit, saying the case is “based on an overwhelming amount of untampered evidence detailing Blake Lively and...