The fact that Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni weren’t doing press together was the first thing viewers noticed. It sounds insignificant, almost unimportant. Two individuals who collaborated on a $350 million movie were unable to share a single interview. Fans had begun to piece together what they could find by the time It Ends With Us opened in August 2024, including social media followings, promotional appearances, and body language in the few pictures that showed them together. It was obvious that something had gone wrong. Nobody was yet fully aware of how long it had been developing or how wrong it was.
The solution was revealed in December 2024 when an article titled “We Can Bury Anyone: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine” in the New York Times detailed a complaint that Lively had submitted to the California Civil Rights Department. A few days later, Lively formalized those accusations into a federal lawsuit in New York. There are two interconnected answers to the central question, which is why Blake Lively sued Justin Baldoni. One concerns alleged incidents that occurred on the set. The other concerns what is said to have transpired thereafter.
Lively claimed that there was a pattern of behavior on set that she characterized as sexual harassment. The complaint claims that Baldoni made remarks regarding his private sexual life, including a purported “pornography addiction.” During a scene, he allegedly leaned toward her as if to kiss her, rubbed his face against her neck, and flicked her lower lip in an unplanned act of intimacy. He refuted the characterizations, claiming that the production addressed her concerns at the time and that some of this amounted to “miscommunications and awkward comments” in the context of directing a movie about adult relationships and domestic violence. In April 2026, U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman, who later reviewed the claims, partially agreed with the defense, stating that some of Baldoni’s actions were “not so far beyond what might reasonably be expected to take place between two characters” in a movie with romantic and sexual themes. The harassment allegations were among the ten of Lively’s thirteen claims that were rejected.
Key Information Table
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Plaintiff | Blake Lively (age 38) |
| Defendant(s) | Justin Baldoni; Wayfarer Studios LLC; The Agency Group PR; associated publicists |
| Film | It Ends With Us (2024) — based on Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel |
| Box Office | Nearly $350 million worldwide |
| Blake Lively’s Role | Star (played Lily Bloom); also involved in Sony’s edit of the film |
| Justin Baldoni’s Role | Director and co-star |
| Initial Complaint Filed | December 20, 2024 — California Civil Rights Department |
| Federal Lawsuit Filed | December 31, 2024 — U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York |
| Presiding Judge | U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman |
| Original Claims | 13 claims including sexual harassment, defamation, conspiracy, retaliation, breach of contract |
| Key On-Set Allegations | Inappropriate improvised intimacy; comments about personal sex life including alleged porn addiction; unwanted physical contact during scenes |
| Smear Campaign Allegation | Lively alleged Baldoni/Wayfarer hired crisis PR firm to “weaponize a digital army” against her reputation post-complaint |
| April 2, 2026 Ruling | Judge dismissed 10 of 13 claims including sexual harassment, defamation, conspiracy |
| Reason for Dismissal | Lively was independent contractor, not employee; harassment conduct not “far enough outside” acting in a romance film; California jurisdiction insufficient |
| Remaining 3 Claims | Breach of contract; retaliation (vs. Wayfarer); aiding and abetting retaliation (vs. The Agency Group PR) |
| Baldoni’s Status | Not a defendant in remaining claims; will testify as witness |
| Damages Sought | $142 million – $300 million (compensatory) |
| Trial Start Date | May 18, 2026, New York |
| Baldoni’s $400M Countersuit | Filed January 2025 against Lively, Ryan Reynolds, publicist Leslie Sloane; dismissed June 2025 |
| Baldoni’s NYT Suit | Filed December 2024; later dropped |
| Key Text Evidence | Taylor Swift texts calling Baldoni a derogatory name; Baldoni texts referencing Lively as possessing a “nuclear bomb” |
| Lively’s Attorney | Michael Gottlieb; Sigrid McCawley |
| Baldoni’s Attorney | Bryan Freedman; Alexandra Shapiro; Jonathan Bach |
| Film Production Location | Primarily New Jersey (relevant to California jurisdiction ruling) |
| January 2024 “All Hands” Meeting | Meeting held before filming resumed, addressing Lively’s workplace concerns; attended by Reynolds and key stakeholders |
Lively’s lawyers were careful to highlight the technical reason the harassment claims were unsuccessful. The dismissal occurred because Lively was categorized as an independent contractor rather than a full employee—a distinction that determines which specific harassment statutes apply—rather than because the court found nothing improper had happened. Since most of the filming was done in New Jersey, California jurisdiction was also a problem. “Sexual harassment isn’t going forward not because the defendants did nothing wrong but because the court determined Blake Lively was an independent contractor,” said Lively’s lawyer, Sigrid McCawley.Although crucial from a legal standpoint, that framing doesn’t settle the factual dispute.
The second thread, the alleged retaliation, is what keeps the case alive until trial. Lively has consistently referred to this as the more persistent injury. She claims that Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios hired a crisis PR firm and, in collaboration with digital strategists, created an infrastructure to sway public opinion against her after she voiced concerns about on-set behavior in early 2024. The complaint detailed a concerted attempt to “weaponize a digital army”—plant negative narratives in friendly media, amplify criticism of Lively on social media, and stifle positive coverage of her.” Three claims—breach of contract, retaliation against Wayfarer Studios, and aiding and abetting retaliation against The Agency Group PR—were permitted to go to trial after the judge determined that at least some of the alleged behavior “arguably crossed the line”.
The legal dispute took unexpected turns. According to leaked texts, Taylor Swift called Baldoni a derogatory term and hinted that he expected trouble. Baldoni claimed in his own messages that Lively had a “nuclear bomb”—the capacity to make accusations public and ruin his reputation—and that “the risk to my family isn’t worth the creative integrity.” In June 2025, his $400 million countersuit against Lively, Reynolds, and their publicist—which claimed extortion, defamation, and that Lively had essentially “stolen” the movie—was dismissed. The judge determined that Lively’s influence over the movie’s promotion was “legally permissible hard bargaining” rather than extortion, finding the claims to be legally insufficient.
As this case approaches its trial date of May 18, there is a sense that it has grown beyond the scope of either party. The remaining claims, according to Lively’s legal team, are a test of whether coordinated online reputation attacks—the contemporary equivalent of a smear campaign—can be prosecuted. At least in part, the court agreed. It is still genuinely unclear what a jury will find regarding the particular alleged retaliatory behavior. Regardless of the outcome, however, the legal record being established here is already altering Hollywood’s perception of what happens when someone on a movie set chooses to speak up.
