Blake Lively has escalated her legal battle with co-star Justin Baldoni by filing a formal lawsuit against him.
The New Year’s Eve filing came less than two weeks after she filed a legal complaint accusing him of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment, and orchestrating a retaliatory social media campaign to tarnish her reputation.
The previous complaint—a precursor to a lawsuit—was filed with the California Civil Rights Commission, but the new lawsuit was filed in federal court in New York.
On New Year’s Eve, Blake Lively escalated her legal battle with co-star Justin Baldoni with a new lawsuit
“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,” Lively said in a statement to the New York Times about her previous complaint.
In the new lawsuit, the 37-year-old actress is suing her It Ends with Us co-star and director of causing “severe emotional distress and pain, humiliation, embarrassment, belittlement, frustration, and mental anguish,” as well as lost wages.
The lawsuit also includes complaints she included in previous legal action about Baldoni’s alleged inappropriate behavior on set.
Lively is also suing Baldoni’s crisis managers, Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, along with Wayfarer Studios, which produced the movie adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel.
The actress is suing him of allegedly causing “severe emotional distress and pain, humiliation, embarrassment, belittlement, frustration, and mental anguish”
She is seeking punitive damages at “an amount to be determined at trial.”
“Earlier today, Ms. Lively filed a federal complaint against Wayfarer Studios and others in the Southern District of New York,” her lawyers said in a statement to the New York Post.
“Ms. Lively previously sent her California Civil Rights Department Complaint in response to the retaliatory campaign Wayfarer launched against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns,” the statement continued.
“Unfortunately, Ms. Lively’s decision to speak out has resulted in further retaliation and attacks.”
The 37-year-old star is seeking punitive damages at “an amount to be determined at trial”
“As alleged in Ms. Lively’s federal Complaint, Wayfarer and its associates have violated federal and California state law by retaliating against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns,” they said.
“Now, the defendants will answer for their conduct in federal court. Ms. Lively has brought this litigation in New York, where much of the relevant activities described in the Complaint took place, but we reserve the right to pursue further action in other venues and jurisdictions as appropriate under the law,” the statement added.
Lively’s lawsuit filing took place on the same day Baldoni filed a $250M libel suit against the New York Times for its December 21 article on her previous legal complaint.
Baldoni has also filed a lawsuit against the New York Times for their coverage of Lively’s previous legal complaint
“Lively’s cynical abuse of sexual harassment allegations to assert unilateral control over every aspect of the production was both strategic and manipulative,” Baldoni’s lawsuit stated.
“Simultaneously, her public image suffered as a result of a series of high-profile blunders, which she tried to deflect by blaming Plaintiffs for the public’s prying interest into the foibles of an A-list celebrity.”
“This is nothing but an excuse. Fame is a double-edged sword, but Lively’s tactics here are unconscionable,” the statement continued.
A spokesperson for the New York Times said they plan to “vigorously defend” themselves against Baldoni’s lawsuit.
“We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit,” a New York Times spokesperson said about the lawsuit initiated by Baldoni
“The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead. Our story was meticulously and responsibly reported,” the spokesperson said.
“It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including the text messages and emails that we quote accurately and at length in the article,” they continued.
“To date, Wayfarer Studios, Mr. Baldoni, the other subjects of the article and their representatives have not pointed to a single error. We published their full statement in response to the allegations in the article as well. We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit,” the spokesperson added.
In her California complaint, Lively accused the actor-director of creating a “hostile work environment” during the making of It Ends with Us
In the initial legal complaint she filed last month, Lively accused Baldoni of creating a “hostile work environment” during the making of the film and would let his “friends” watch her film intimate scenes.
She also alleged that he treated her as a “sex object” and entered her trailer while she was undressed on one occasion.
Furthermore, she alleged that he constantly focused on her weight and physical appearance, finding “back channel ways of criticizing her body and weight.”
Lively also accused Baldoni and his crisis managers of coming up with a smear campaign to tarnish her reputation
As per Lively’s complaint, she raised her concerns with the production team in a meeting attended by herself, her husband Ryan Reynolds, Baldoni, their lawyers, and others.
The Age of Adaline actress also accused Baldoni and his crisis managers of coming up with a smear campaign to tarnish her reputation.
Text messages allegedly exchanged between him and PR experts Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel appear to show them discussing campaign strategies and how “majority of socials are so pro Justin.”
Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman denied the allegations against his client in the California filing.
Text messages exchanged between Baldoni and his crisis managers appear to show them discuss ways to “shift the narrative” towards “Blake and Ryan”
“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…” he previously said.
The lawyer said the “negative reputation” 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,” he added.
“These claims are completely false, outrageous, and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media,” he added.
Author Colleen Hoover, actor Brandon Sklenar, and others expressed support for Lively after her previous legal complaint
A number of celebrities have thrown their support behind Lively following her previous California filing.
“You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met,” she wrote on social media. “Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt,” author Hoover wrote on social media.
Lively’s It Ends with Us co-star Brandon Sklenar also expressed his support for her.
Meanwhile, her co-stars from The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants—America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn and Alexis Bledel—shared a joint statement and said, “As Blake’s friends and sisters for over 20 years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights back against the reported campaign waged to destroy her reputation.”
“He doesn’t sue Blake but the news outlets. Interesting,” one social media user commented on the evolving scandal
