Blake Lively has launched a legal battle against her former "It Ends with Us" co-star and director Justin Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment and alleging a coordinated effort to damage her reputation. Baldoni's team has responded, calling her claims a false attempt to restore her image.
The lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, reveals that tensions escalated to the point where an all-hands-on-deck meeting was convened to address what Lively describes as a hostile work environment, with her husband Ryan Reynolds among the attendees.
Lively's lawsuit outlines several demands related to Baldoni's alleged conduct, including a ban on showing nude videos or images of women to her, prohibitions on discussing Baldoni's supposed "pornography addiction," restrictions on conversations about sexual conquests in her presence, and no further mentions of the cast and crew's genitalia. Additionally, it demands no inquiries about her weight and no references to her deceased father.
The lawsuit also includes a demand for "no more additions of sex scenes, oral sex, or on-camera climaxing by BL beyond the script approved by BL upon joining the project."
According to the suit, these demands were accepted by the studio, but a significant conflict arose over the marketing strategy. Blake wanted a more optimistic portrayal of her character’s resilience, following the marketing plan, while Baldoni preferred to center the focus on domestic violence and deviated from the agreed-upon script.
Lively alleges that Baldoni and his team orchestrated a "social manipulation" campaign aimed at "destroying" her reputation. The lawsuit includes messages from Baldoni's publicist to the studio publicist, stating that Baldoni "wants to feel like [Ms. Lively] can be buried," adding, "We can't write that we will destroy her."
The lawsuit claims that the campaign harmed Lively's business and caused her family "severe emotional distress."
Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, criticized the lawsuit, arguing that it was aimed at "repairing her negative reputation." He added that the allegations are "false, outrageous, and intentionally salacious with the intent to cause public harm."
Freedman further claims that Lively was difficult to work with on set, "threatening not to show up, threatening not to promote the film, which ultimately contributed to its poor release."
As we've previously reported, this dispute has been ongoing for months and includes allegations that Baldoni asked his trainer about Lively's weight. While Lively perceived this as fat-shaming, Baldoni contends that he was only inquiring because he had a bad back and was trying to protect it.
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