As the legal battle surrounding It Ends With Us rages on, a new wrinkle has been added. After Justin Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times following their publication of a story about Blake Lively’s complaint against the director, the news outlet has filed to be dismissed from the lawsuit. Along with that, a spokesperson for Blake Lively stood behind the NYT’s decision, noting that the Ryle actor and those working with him have “used a social media combat plan to scorch earth.”
After the motion to dismiss was filed, a spokesperson for Blake Lively spoke to Deadline. They claimed it was the right move, calling Baldoni’s lawsuit “a shameless PR document that has no business in a court of law.” Continuing to speak about why they are happy the publication is moving to be dismissed, the representative said:
For years, Baldoni urged men to listen to and believe women. But when a woman spoke out about his behavior, he and his billionaire backer Steve Sorowitz used a social media combat plan to scorch earth and try to ‘bury’ and ‘destroy’ her, along with the media who reports on it. These bullying tactics will not survive in court, and everyone should see their meritless claims for what they are.
This sentiment goes along with the reason behind why The New York Times is trying to exit the case. Danielle Rhoades Ha, who is the Senior Vice President, External Communications at the publication, broke that down, explaining why the “case should never have been brought against The New York Times”:
As our motion shows, this case should never have been brought against The New York Times. Blake Lively raised serious concerns about the way she was treated on the set and after the movie’s release. We did exactly what news organizations should do: we informed the public of the complaint she filed with the California Civil Rights Department.
Along with defending their reasoning for writing the story, she explained why Baldoni’s lawsuit “will not silence” them, saying:
Mr. Baldoni’s misbegotten campaign against the Times — questioning our ethics, attempting to discredit our reporting, filing a baseless lawsuit — will not silence us.
Notably, this move from The Times and the statement from Lively’s team come about a month after Baldoni’s team updated their argument against them to claim that the actress and the publication had been plotting and planning this article months before it was published.
Now, The NYT wants to be removed from the suit, and in a memorandum that came with the motion (via Deadline), the publication explained:
Throughout their blunderbuss complaint, the Wayfarer Parties seek to drag The Times into their larger feud with Lively. But the only thing The Times is, in fact, alleged to have done is engage in newsgathering and publishing an Article and Video about the Wayfarer/Lively dispute.
This move adds to the complicated situation with all these intertwined lawsuits that came out of all the drama regarding the making and release of It Ends With Us. Along with suing the NYT, Baldoni is suing Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, and his lawyer has been outspoken about aggressively handling these lawsuits.
On the Gossip Girl star’s side, she’s suing Baldoni. Also, most recently, on February 28, a judge issued a mixed ruling to her by allowing her to subpoena part of Baldoni’s phone records while also not allowing other requests, calling them “overly intrusive,” per Variety.
Overall, as a lawyer predicted, the situation between Lively and Baldoni is getting “nastier” as more updates come out about how these intertwined lawsuits are evolving. So, as we learn more about it all – including the role The New York Times plays in the legal battle – we’ll keep you updated.
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