Justin Baldoni has delivered on his plans to launch a countersuit against Blake Lively amid It Ends With Us legal drama, only instead of naming the actress directly, Baldoni’s legal pursuit has been redirected to The New York Times.
As the fallout from the high-profile case shows no sign of dissipating, Baldoni has filed a scathing $250 million lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court in response to The Times article published in the last week of 2024.
The 87-page complaint was filed by Baldoni’s lawyers alongside 10 additional plaintiffs including publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, and producers Jamey Heath and Steve Sarowitz of Wayfarer Studios.
Just shy of 48-hours earlier, it was reported that lawyers were readying to present a case in response to Blake Lively’s allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation, after the bombshell filing revealed the actress was subject to an orchestrated smear campaign intent on “burying her” in the public eye.
An elaborate PR takedown highlighted through subpoenaed text messages between Baldoni and his publicists revealed the inner-workings of the retaliatory social media campaign and caused a swift fallout for Baldoni following the shocking allegations.
Since the initial complaint went public, Baldoni has since been dropped by his agency William Morris Endeavor (WME), has been stripped of his Voices of Solidarity awards, had his podcast co-host resign, and is also being sued by his former publicist Steph Jones for breach of contract.
The accusations caused shockwaves that continue to be felt throughout Hollywood, as co-stars, friends and industry colleagues have voiced their support of Lively amid the concerning revelations.
This latest move on behalf of Baldoni and his team of co-plaintiffs, is an attempt to claw back a favourable narrative for himself in wake of the serious claims, with a focus on alleged libel.
Why is Justin Baldoni Suing The New York Times?
The initial lawsuit filed by Baldoni and his team accuses The Times of libel and false light invasion of privacy over the December 21 article titled “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine.”
The filing also includes accusations of promissory fraud and breach of implied-in-fact contract, and attempts to outline a rebuttal to the publication’s 4000 word article.
According to the lawsuit, Baldoni and co allege that The Times centred Lively as the victim of a smear campaign – when, as the plaintiffs argue, it was the other way around.
Redirecting the blame to Lively, Baldoni’s filing claims it was the actress who embarked on a “strategic and manipulative” takedown of Baldoni, amplified by “sexual harassment allegations to assert unilateral control over every aspect of the production.”
The suit also includes allegations against Ryan Reynolds, whom allegedly “berated” Baldoni during a tense meeting at their Tribeca penthouse in New York, where the actor allegedly accused him of “fat shaming” his wife.
Similarly, Reynolds is also listed as being involved in the events that led to Baldoni being dropped by his agency – WME.
As the suit outlines, Reynolds allegedly pressured the agency (who he and wife Blake Lively are also managed by) during the Deadpool and Wolverine premiere in July – which precedes Baldoni’s partnership with the crisis PR firm.
Representatives from the agency immediately responded – denying there was any involvement from either Lively or Reynolds.
In a statement to Variety, attorney Bryan Freedman, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Baldoni and the additional plaintiffs, said The Times “cowered to the wants and whims of two powerful ‘untouchable’ Hollywood elites, disregarding journalistic practices and ethics once befitting of the revered publication by using doctored and manipulated texts and intentionally omitting texts which dispute their chosen PR narrative.”
At the time of Baldoni’s filing, Lively’s complaint was still solely sitting with the California Civil Rights Department, which is noted in the lawsuit against The Times – which reads: “Notably, Lively chose not to file a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer, or any of the Plaintiffs — a choice that spared her from the scrutiny of the discovery process, including answering questions under oath and producing her communications. This decision was no accident.”
However, by the time Baldoni’s complaint was made public, representatives for Lively had already filed a federal complaint against Wayfarer Studios, Baldoni et at, in the Southern District of New York.
A statement released by Lively’s team reads: “Unfortunately, Ms. Lively’s decision to speak out has resulted in further retaliation and attacks. As alleged in Ms. Lively’s federal Complaint, Wayfarer and its associates have violated federal and California state law by retaliating against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns. Now, the defendants will answer for their conduct in federal court.”
Is Justin Baldoni Still Suing Blake Lively?
As previously reported, the UK’s Daily Mail revealed that Baldoni was working on filing a counter-lawsuit against Blake Lively, along with his business partner and Wayfarer Studios CEO Jamey Heath, and the publicists named in Lively’s lawsuit.
At the time of writing, the only lawsuit filed has been against The Times, although earlier comments from Baldoni’s lawyer reportedly hint that there may be multiple lawsuits coming.
According to The Mail, Baldoni’s lawyers claim to have proof that false narratives about Baldoni were “touted around town by Lively’s publicist, Leslie Sloane,” an allegation vehemently denied by Sloane.
Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman, allegedly has knowledge of evidence linking Sloane to one of the “leaked” stories alleging that his client had previously been the subject of three separate HR complaints.
When The Mail initially approached Sloane for comment, the publicist said that she had been contacted by various press outlets in relation to the claims, but when contacted, “responded to press questions by referring them to Wayfarer or Sony,” she says.
“It’s clear that Mr Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates are suggesting that I originated press stories about HR complaints on set, which is false.”
According to sources, the countersuit was also to include the assertion that the accusations levelled against Baldoni’s crisis PR team led by Melissa Nathan and Jen Abel, are in fact, a smear campaign against them.
“Nathan and Abel will content that text exchanges between them have been edited and presented in a way that gives an inaccurate and damning impression,” reveals The Mail.
Another source also told the publication: “The people who say that Blake Lively was the victim of a smear campaign are running one themselves. We have a great deal of evidence from emails and WhatsApps and other records which will show that this is the case.”
It’s also important to note that The Daily Mail is one of the press outlets repeatedly named as a major player in Baldoni’s alleged smear campaign, as evidenced throughout The New York Times article.
How Did Justin Baldoni’s Lawyers Respond?
In an initial statement responding to The Daily Mail‘s self-declared exclusive, Bryan Freedman told Deadline that he would neither confirm nor deny the publication’s claims about the date of filing.
Adding: “I am not going to speak to when or how many lawsuits we are filing but when we file our first lawsuit, it is going to shock everyone who has been manipulated into believing a demonstrably false narrative,” said Freedman.
“It will be supported by real evidence and tell the true story. In over 30 years of practicing, I have never seen this level of unethical behaviour intentionally fuelled through media manipulation. It reminds me of what NBC tried to do to Megyn Kelly and Gabrielle Union and we all know how that ended up. Standby.”
Related articles:
- Why We All Owe Blake Lively An Apology Amid Shocking Justin Baldoni Claims
- Blake Lively’s ‘It Ends With Us’ Co-Stars Speak Out Following Lawsuit
- The ‘It Ends With Us’ Lawsuit Fallout Continues For Justin Baldoni
- Blake Lively, Misogyny & The Need For Nuance
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
