Months after the release of the 2024 movie schedule entry It Ends with Us released, it’s been reported that lead actress/producer Blake Lively is taking legal action against co-star and director Justin Baldoni. Lively is suing Baldoni for sexual harassment that allegedly took place on the set. Since news of the lawsuit broke, Baldoni has issued a response via his legal team, and they’ve vehemently denied accusations. At the same time, leaked messages from Baldoni’s crisis management team also mention Taylor Swift a few times.
How Justin Baldoni Reacted To The Lawsuit Filed Against Him
Justin Baldoni, who was just dropped by WME, is currently being represented by entertainment lawyer Bryan Freedman, who issued a statement on his behalf. Per the NYT, Freedman asserted that the claims were “claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.” While the attorney didn’t specifically address the on-set misconduct allegations, he did claim that the Age of Adaline alum planted “negative and completely fabricated and false stories with media.”
Amid production on It Ends with Us, Blake Lively reportedly took part in an all-hands-on-deck meeting to address the Jane the Virgin alum’s alleged behavior. Lively claimed in her suit that she aimed to prevent the director from continuing to discuss his past sexual activities on set, asking about crew members' genitalia, discussing his past “pornography addiction” and more. Additionally, Lively alleged that the Clouds helmer launched a smear campaign against her using “social manipulation” and caused her “severe emotional distress.”
Thus far, Justin Baldoni’s camp has denied the notion that he tried to damage the Gossip Girl alum’s reputation. However, the actress included supposed emails from Baldoni’s crisis team to back up her assertion, and among the names mentioned within the messages was Taylor Swift’s.
Why Was Taylor Swift Mentioned In The Alleged Messages?
As part of her suit, Blake Lively included several exhibits, with one being a supposed email from one of Justin Baldoni’s crisis management experts. According to Us Weekly, the email was sent on August 6, and the “Willow” singer was brought up in regard to how seriously the team should take Baldoni’s circumstances. At one point, the crisis official wrote, “we have seen the most innocuous issues turn giant due to socials or the hugest crises have no effect on social whatsoever. You just cannot tell at this stage. But, BL does have some of the same TS fanbase so we will be taking it extremely seriously.”
The Rhythm Section star’s complaint also featured alleged quotes from a “scenario planning” document shared amongst her IEWU director’s crisis management team. It apparently notes that at the time, the team would seek to “explore planting stories about the weaponization of feminism and how people like Taylor Swift, have been accused of utilizing these tactics to ‘bully’ into getting what they want.”
Blake Lively and Taylor Swift’s friendship is well known by this point, as the actors have been close for some time now. Months ago, it was alleged that the Grammy winner had become somewhat involved in the reported rift between Lively and Justin Baldoni. Per a source, Swift factored into the drama due to her supposedly serving as a shoulder for Lively to lean on for support amid the situation. As of this writing, Swift has not spoken out on the leaked messages or the lawsuit as a whole.
Ahead of the lawsuit filing, neither Justin Baldoni nor Blake Lively publicly confirmed any issues between each other. However, at one point. Lively did allude to some creative disagreements. It End with Us (which is currently available to stream with a Netflix subscription) ultimately received mixed reviews, though it grossed over $350 million worldwide against a reported $25 million budget. As for how the legal situation plays out, that remains to be seen.
