The standoff between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is gaining momentum at the start of the year.source: getty
Actor and director Justin Baldoni files suit against New York Times. Through this action, he counterattacks against his co-star Blake Lively, who accuses him, among other things, of having led a smear campaign against her.
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Two star actors, and a battle that rages not only on the legal level, but also in the media arena.
Shortly after actress Blake Lively, 37, filed a lawsuit against her film co-star Jamais plus (It Ends With Us), it is the turn of Justin Baldoni, 40, to take legal action.
As a reminder, the rag has been burning between the two stars since the filming of this film adapted from the eponymous novel by Colleen Hoover, which addresses the theme of domestic violence. Despite the huge success of the project, which raked in more than $350 million at the box office, rumors of a disagreement began to swell when the public realized that Blake and Justin were each handling the promotional campaign. side.
Blake takes action
Blake Lively ended up filing a complaint against Justin Baldoni on December 20, accusing him of “disturbing” behavior on set. Justin is also suspected of having orchestrated a smear campaign against the actress in the media.
TMZ had also reported fatophobic remarks supposedly made by Baldoni, when the actress had just given birth to her fourth child. A story about a kiss scene that went on too long also gained momentum in the media. On the set, a crisis session – which Blake’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, had attended – was even organized.
Blake and Justin on the set of Never again. GC Images
The New York Times had relayed the complaint, as well as the words of Blake Lively. He also revealed damning messages exchanged between Baldoni and his team. The title of the paper:
“Behind the scenes of a Hollywood smear machine”
«”We Can Bury Anyone”: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine»source
In the columns of the famous daily, one could notably read that “[Baldoni] repeatedly entered her makeup trailer uninvited, while she was undressed, including when she was breastfeeding.”
Justin Baldoni takes action
This January 1, 2025, Justin Baldoni decided to react to these accusations, by filing a complaint against the New York Times. In his 87-page file, the director accuses Blake Lively and her husband of having put pressure on his agency WME to break his contract.
Attorney Bryan Freedman, representing Baldoni, spoke to the media Variety. He denounces doctored SMS messages, and a “strategic and manipulative” smear campaign orchestrated to bring down the forty-year-old. Baldoni further denounces “false allegations of sexual harassment to assert unilateral control over all aspects of production.”
In this story, the director places the primary responsibility on New York Times“which relied almost entirely on Lively’s unverified and self-serving account, repeating it almost verbatim while ignoring an abundance of evidence that contradicted her claims and exposed her true motivations,” the complaint reads.
As Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, assures Variety:
“(…) The Times bowed to the desires and whims of two powerful, untouchable Hollywood elites, flouting journalistic practices and ethics… by using doctored and manipulated text and intentionally omitting messages that challenge their chosen PR narrative.”
Still according to Freedman, the article in New York Times would have helped “revitalize Lively’s failing public image.”
The filing includes text messages purporting to prove that Baldoni “consistently expressed his desire to avoid harming Lively.”
9 other plaintiffs and $250 million
As a reminder, Lively’s version was presented in an 80-page letter filed on December 20, 2024 with the California Department of Civil Rights, which the Times used as the basis of his article.
For his part, Baldoni is not alone. He is accompanied by “a group of nine other plaintiffs, including his production company Wayfarer Studios, business partners and a public relations team.”
This group continues the New York Times for “violation of privacy through false information, fraud on promises and implicit contracts”, indicates the media Paris-Match. More than a simple apology, the plaintiffs are demanding a sum of 250 million dollars in compensation.
In response, the New York Times defended his article, writes the magazine People. The American media claims to have reported the elements of the investigation “meticulously and responsibly”.
There is no doubt that actress Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds are off to a bad start to 2025.
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