Justin Baldoni drops Taylor Swift subpoena
Justin Baldoni has dropped the subpoena issued to Taylor Swift in his ongoing legal battle with Blake Lively.
The 41-year-old actor is being sued by his 'It Ends With Us' co-star for sexual harassment and attempting to destroy her reputation, while he has hit back with a lawsuit accusing her of extortion and defamation, and though he had wanted Blake's close friend to give evidence in the case, the 'Gossip Girl' star's representative has revealed that is no longer the case.
A spokesperson for Blake said in a statement: 'We are pleased that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties have withdrawn their harassing subpoenas to Taylor Swift and her law firm.
'We supported the efforts of Taylor's team to quash these inappropriate subpoenas directed to her counsel and we will continue to stand up for any third party who is unjustly harassed or threatened in the process.'
The representative accused Justin and his company, Wayfarer Studios, of trying to put the 'Cruel Summer' hitmaker "at the centre of this case" from the beginning and suggested the subpoena had been a distraction tactic.
The statement continued: "The Baldoni and Wayfarer team have tried to put Taylor Swift, a woman who has been an inspiration for tens of millions across the globe, at the centre of this case since day one.
"Exploiting Taylor Swift's celebrity was the original plan in Melissa Nathan's scenario planning document, and it continues to this day. Faced with having to justify themselves in federal court, they folded.
"At some point they will run out of distractions from the actual claims of sexual harassment and retaliation they are facing."
Taylor's spokesperson previously slammed the decision to issue her with a subpoena because she had no major connection to the filming of 'It Ends With Us'.
Her representative said: "Taylor Swift never set foot on the set of this movie, she was not involved in any casting or creative decisions, she did not score the film, she never saw an edit or made any notes on the film, she did not even see 'It Ends With Us' until weeks after its public release, and was travelling around the globe during 2023 and 2024 headlining the biggest tour in history.
"The connection Taylor had to this film was permitting the use of one song, 'My Tears Ricochet.' Given that her involvement was licensing a song for the film, which 19 other artists also did, this document subpoena is designed to use Taylor Swift's name to draw public interest by creating tabloid clickbait instead of focusing on the facts of the case."
Justin had claimed in his countersuit that Taylor and Blake's husband Ryan Reynolds pressured him into accepting a rewrite by the actress and described a meeting at the couple's home, during which he alleged the 'Bad Blood' singer "began praising Lively's script."
The documents added: "Baldoni understood the subtext: he needed to comply with Lively's direction."
A trial is scheduled to take place in March 2026.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Perth Now
Taylor Swift's Reputation struggles
Taylor Swift has struggled to re-record 'Reputation'. After Scooter Braun bought the master recordings of Taylor's first six albums from her former record label Big Machine in 2019, the 35-year-old singer set about re-releasing new versions of her work. And, while she has already released 'Fearless', 'Speak Now' 'Red' and '1989' and has her self-titled debut completed and ready to go, she admitted that 'Reputation has been more difficult. In an emotional statement after she successfully bought back her masters from investment firm Shamrock Capital, Taylor told her fans: "I know, I know. What about Rep TV? Full transparency: I haven't even re-recorded a quarter of it. The Reputation album was so specific to that time in my life, and I kept hitting a stopping point when I tried to remake it. 'All that defiance, that longing to be understood while feeling purposely misunderstood, that desperate hope, that shame-born snarl and mischief. To be perfectly honest, it's the one album in those first 6 that I thought couldn't be improved upon by redoing it. Not the music, or the photos, or videos. So I kept putting it off. There will be a time (if you're into the idea) for the unreleased vault tracks from that album to hatch. "I've already completely re-recorded my entire debut album, and I really love how it sounds now. Those 2 albums can still have their moments to re-emerge when the time is right, if that would be something you guys would be excited about. But if it happens, it won't be from a place of sadness and longing for what I wish I could have. It will just be a celebration now." However, Taylor previously admitted she is excited to release the 'Reputation' vault tracks. She told Time: 'It's a goth-punk moment of female rage at being gaslit by an entire social structure. I think a lot of people see it and they're just like, sick snakes and strobe lights.'
West Australian
2 days ago
- West Australian
Spotify AI tool Seat Belters promotes driver safety with playlist hack, based on fresh research
You're driving down the freeway and a car screams past with frenetic music blasting from the windows. There's every chance those blaring beats are directly linked with the driver's reckless behaviour. We know music can have a powerful effect on our emotions, and it turns out it has a major impact on how safely we drive, too, with studies showing songs with a beat-per-minute count of more than 120 to be the worst culprits. These up-tempo tracks have been proven to negatively affect reaction times and overall awareness, producing more erratic driving patterns and riskier on-road attitudes. New research from Allianz Australia reveals one in three (32 per cent) Aussie drivers believes music affects their driving, with a third of those (33 per cent) reporting decreased concentration when listening to high-bpm music on the road. But if you think this category of music is reserved for heavy metal or bass-rich techno, think again. Your favourite song may well be within the BPM danger zone. Taylor Swift's pop banger Shake It Off and OutKast's Hey Ya! both come in at 160bpm, while Beat It by Michael Jackson (138), I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor (132) and Bye Bye Bye by NSYNC (173) are all well over what is considered safe for on-road listening. At exactly 120bpm, Lady Gaga's Poker Face, Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars' Uptown Funk, Adele's Rolling In The Deep and ABBA's Dancing Queen are also just out of bounds. According to Allianz's data, more than half (52 per cent) of Aussie drivers sing along to music while in their car and 44 per cent will crank up the volume when their favourite song comes on, potentially creating dangerous conditions without us even realising. Road safety expert Andry Rakotonirainy has investigated the connection between auditory inputs, like music, and cognitive performance while driving and was fascinated by the findings. 'The emerging data from Allianz Australia is particularly interesting to me, as it shows how music tempo can influence concentration, reaction time and even speeding, highlighting the need for me to explore this further, especially as in-car entertainment becomes more pervasive and immersive,' Dr Rakotonirainy says. 'When we think about running, we often choose fast-tempo music to push our pace. The same concept applies to driving, as higher bpm tracks can subconsciously encourage faster speeds and reduce concentration. 'It's not surprising that the tempo of the music we listen to can influence how we behave behind the wheel.' Yet clearly it's hard to pick a harmonic hazard if earlier examples are anything to go by. Dr Rakotonirainy says there are some genres that are more likely to have a lower bpm, in the 'ideal' range of 60-80, including classical, ambient, acoustic and jazz. 'These types of genres generally have slower tempos and fewer sudden changes, which could help maintain a steady pace and reduce the likelihood of risky driving behaviours, such as speeding or reduced reaction times,' he explains. Some popular songs that fall into the 60-80bpm category are The Beatles' Let It Be (72), Etta James' At Last (87), Billie Eilish's Ocean Eyes (73), Sam Smith's Stay With Me (84) and TLC's Waterfalls (89). However, we don't have to manually look up the bpm of our favourite songs to make sure they are suitable for driving. Bolstered by the research, Allianz has partnered with Spotify to create a new in-app tool, Seat Belters, which generates personalised playlists that sit within the 60-80bpm range while considering users' music interests. Utilising Spotify's steaming intelligence to promote a more focused state for those behind the wheel is a crucial innovation, Dr Rakotonirainy says. 'Tech platforms like Spotify have enormous reach and can personalise content in real time,' he says. 'By embedding safety-focused experiences like Allianz Seat Belters into everyday music listening and making the experience available to all Spotify users, Allianz is helping to encourage safer driving behaviours at scale.' He adds, 'If Australians could take a moment to consider the music they are listening to before getting behind the wheel, it could have a positive impact on their behaviour.' As for whether there is a genre of music that can turn us into better drivers, there isn't yet conclusive research. 'Driving behaviour is closely linked to psychological states such as mood and arousal,' Dr Rakotonirainy says. 'Music has the potential to positively influence mood and enhance the driving experience. However, from a research perspective, isolating the effect of specific types of music on driving performance is methodologically complex, due to individual variability in music preferences, baseline mood and driving context.' While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, Seat Belters aims to strike a balance — especially when 58 per cent of Aussie drivers say they 'always' listen to music while on the road and 13 million people around the country are active Spotify users every month. 'The in-app experience is a great chance for music lovers to combine safety and entertainment in a fun, relatable and accessible way,' Dr Rakotonirainy says. As artificial intelligence infiltrates our daily life at an exponential rate, Dr Rakotonirainy is continuing to investigate the intersection between technology and driver safety. 'While many people are familiar with automated or driverless cars, technologies heavily reliant on AI, its potential goes well beyond automation — it will improve safety,' he says. 'AI can also enable real-time monitoring of driving conditions, detect distraction or drowsiness, assess cognitive load, and even adapt in-car environments or vehicle speed accordingly. 'Beyond music, AI could also enhance route planning and deliver smarter in-vehicle alerts, creating a more responsive and human-centred driving experience.' + To create your own personalised Seat Belters playlist, visit + Allianz's research was conducted in April 2025 and sampled more than 1000 Australians aged 18 and above who hold valid driver's licences and listen to music while driving.
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Perth Now
Scooter Braun reacts to Taylor Swift buying back her masters
Scooter Braun is 'happy' for Taylor Swift after she bought back the rights to her master recordings. Taylor, 35, was furious in 2019 when music manager Scooter, 43, bought her former label, Big Machine Records, and her master recordings, which he then sold on to Shamrock Capital in 2020. However, after Taylor revealed she had finally purchased back her music, Scooter shared his positive reaction. He told Us Weekly: 'I am happy for her.' In an emotional update on her website, Taylor revealed she had managed to acquire the rights to all of the songs from 'Taylor Swift', 'Fearless', 'Speak Now', 'Red', '1989' and 'Reputation'. She wrote: 'I'm trying to gather my thoughts into something coherent, but right now my mind is just a slideshow. A flashback sequence of all the times I daydreamed about, wished for, and pined away for a chance to get to tell you this news. All the times I was thiiiiiiiiiiiiis close , reaching out for it, only for it to fall through. I almost stopped thinking it could ever happen, after 20 years of having the carrot dangled then yanked away. But that's all in the past now. 'I've been bursting into tears of joy at random intervals ever since I found out that this is really happening. I really get to say these words: All of the music I've ever made... now belongs... to me. And all my music videos. All the concert films. The album art and photography. The unreleased songs. The memories. The magic. The madness. Every single era. My entire life's work. 'To say this is my greatest dream come true is actually being pretty reserved about it. To my fans, you know how important this has been to me - so much so that I meticulously re-recorded and released 4 of my albums, calling them Taylor's Version. The passionate support you showed those albums and the success story you turned The Eras Tour into is why I was able to buy back my music. I can't thank you enough for helping to reunite me with this art that I have dedicated my life to, but have never owned until now.'
