It Ends With Us director and star Justin Baldoni’s lawyer confirms that the actor plans to sue co-star Blake Lively and others for alleging that Baldoni sexually harassed Lively and orchestrated a smear campaign against the actor during the film’s promotion. Baldoni and his legal team have already filed a libel lawsuit against the New York Times for a story that contained selected texts and emails that supported the allegation, published a day after Lively filed a sexual harassment complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department.
Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, told NBC News that the actor is “absolutely” planning to take legal action against Lively and others. He denied the claims that Baldoni plotted a campaign with his publicist relations team to smear Lively’s reputation during the promotion of the film, stressing that they’re not afraid to release every conversation between the two actors. See what Freedman said:
100% no. You know, Justin Baldoni, from the get-go, said, “I don’t want to do anything negative toward her. I don’t want to hurt her.”
We plan to release every single text message between the two of them. There is nothing that in any way is a concern about this entire situation from our perspective, and we want the truth to be out there.
In relation to the sexual harassment claims made by Lively, Freeman was asked to comment on Baldoni’s behavior on the set of It Ends with Us, to which he was careful not to outright deny the claims the producer/star made against her director/co-star, instead noting that the actions she’s referring to may have been taken out of context. See the rest of what Freedman said below:
I think there’s some behavior always that can make people uncomfortable, and I don’t think anybody has the intention to do that. The question really in this case is, does it rise to the level of sexual harassment?
What This Means For The It Ends With Us Behind-The-Scenes Controversy
The Legal Battle Is Far From Finished
Baldoni and Lively’s legal feud continues to intensify after Lively’s formal lawsuit against his co-star. On the same day Lively filed her suit, Baldoni sued The New York Times for $250 million in damages for defamation, in which he alleged that the messages between Baldoni’s publicist, Jennifer Abel, and crisis communications preventative Melissa Nathan were “unscrupulously altered and selectively edited,” which the publication chose to endorse in their story. The New York Times responded to the suit with a statement defending their coverage was “based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents” with “accurate” quotes at length.
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In Lively’s sexual harassment suit, she alleged that Baldoni would enter her trailer on set “uninvited while she was undressed, including when she was breastfeeding.” Baldoni’s libel suit includes a text exchange, which appears to show Lively inviting Baldoni over to her trailer to work out their lines while she was pumping milk. Lively’s complaint also detailed that Baldoni “routinely“ criticized her “body and weight“ and called her fitness trainer about her weight for a scene. Baldoni’s suit confirmed the phone call but claimed that the actor requested the information due to safety concerns after back injuries.
Our Take On Blake Lively & Justin Baldoni’s Legal Battles
It Ends With Us Probably Won’t Receive A Sequel From Both Stars
Despite the behind-the-scenes scandal, It Ends With Us was a box office success, amassing more than $350 million against a $25 million budget, which makes the film the highest-grossing romantic drama since 2018’s A Star is Born. Adapted from Colleen Hoover’s novel, the movie chronicles Lily Bloom’s (Lively) romantic encounter with a seemingly charming neurosurgeon, Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni), who turns out to be abusive and sees Lily breaking the cycle of violence and finding healthy partnerships.
Since its release, the romance drama has received mixed reviews from critics and audiences. Screen Rant’s review of It Ends With Us praised the film for having “a mixed bag of great acting and good direction.” However, it also noted how the film is pulling too much from romantic tropes instead of focusing more on the serious themes. With all the behind-the-scenes drama going on, it seems that It Ends With Us 2 is unlikely to happen.
Source: NBC News on TODAY
Based on Colleen Hoover’s 2016 novel, It Ends With Us is a drama-romance film directed by Justin Baldoni. The film follows a recent college graduate named Lily, who meets a man named Ryle and falls in love with him. However, a traumatic incident compounded with her former high-school sweetheart re-entering her life complicates her plans.
- Release Date
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August 9, 2024
- Runtime
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130 Minutes
- Cast
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Blake Lively
, Justin Baldoni
, Brandon Sklenar
, Jenny Slate
, Hasan Minhaj
, Amy Morton
, Kevin McKidd
, Isabela Ferrer
, Alex Neustaedter
, Robert Clohessy
, Robyn Lively
, Megan Robinson
, Robin S. Walker
, Emily Baldoni
, Adam Mondschein
, Caroline Siegrist
, Steve Monroe
, Daphne Zelle - Character(s)
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Lily Bloom
, Ryle Kincaid
, Atlas Corrigan
, Allysa
, Marshall
, Jenny Bloom
, Andrew Bloom
, Young Lily Bloom
, Young Atlas Corrigan
, Sheriff
, Ms. Byland
, Ms. Smith
, Doctor Johnson
, Doctor Julie
, Doctor Dunbar
, Katie
, Realtor
, Female Waiter - Director
-
Justin Baldoni
- Writers
-
Christy Hall
, Colleen Hoover - Studio(s)
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Columbia Pictures
, Wayfarer Studios
, Saks Picture Company - Distributor(s)
-
Sony Pictures Releasing