Justin Baldoni is fighting back against Blake Lively’s lawsuit, accusing him of sexual harassment and driving a “smear campaign” against her.
Baldoni’s lawyer has provided The Daily Beast with raw footage from their film ‘It Ends With Us,’ claiming it “clearly refutes Ms Lively’s characterization of his behaviour.”
However, Lively’s attorneys argue that the video actually “corroborates” her allegations. Lively’s legal team disputes this interpretation in a statement to TMZ as “damning.”
“Every frame of the released footage corroborates, to the letter, what Ms. Lively described in Paragraph 48 of her Complaint,” the statement reads.
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The footage in question shows the two actors filming a slow-dance scene that was ultimately featured in the movie as part of a montage. Lively’s lawsuit, filed in December, alleges that Baldoni “leaned forward and slowly dragged his lips from her ear down her neck as he said, ‘It smells so good,’” which she presented as an example of his inappropriate behaviour.
“When [she] later objected to this behaviour, Mr Baldoni’s response was, ‘I’m not even attracted to you,” Lively’s lawsuit reads further.
Baldoni’s lawyer releases video to dispel allegations against the director
Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, told The Daily Beast, “All three takes filmed in the sequence” on May 23, 2023. “Both actors are clearly behaving well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism,” Freedman noted.
The video also shows Lively and Baldoni discussing ways to enhance the scene’s romantic tone. At one point, they joke about their respective spouses. Baldoni mentions how he and his wife stare into each other’s eyes for extended periods, prompting Lively to call him a “sociopath” and share that she and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, prefer talking. Baldoni later compliments Lively and Reynolds as a couple, to which Lively responds, “I think it’s more than cute.”
Regarding the alleged “smell” comment, the video shows Baldoni nuzzling into Lively’s neck, during which she jokes about her “spray tan” rubbing off. Baldoni laughs and replies, “It smells good.” After the final take, Baldoni calls, “Cut,” and Lively agrees, saying, “Yes, we did.”
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Freedman asserts, “Justin Baldoni and team have nothing to hide. This video, once more, proves this.” He adds that a website will be launched “containing all correspondence as well as relevant videos that directly quash [her] claims.”