Justin Baldoni Body Double Reveals What Blake Lively Was Like on Set

Newsweek

2 days ago

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Justin Baldoni's body double has revealed what Blake Lively was like on the set of the film It Ends With Us in a recent interview.
The Context
It Ends With Us costars Baldoni, 41, and Lively, 37, who have been in a legal battle since December 2024 when Lively filed a sexual harassment complaint against Baldoni. She also accused him of launching a smear campaign aiming to "destroy" her reputation, which Baldoni has denied.
In January, Baldoni hit back at Lively's claims with a $400 million lawsuit against her, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and publicist Leslie Sloane, where he alleged control, defamation, false allegations and more. He also sued The New York Times for $250 million for publishing a report from Lively alleging what took place during filming, which the suit said "relied almost entirely on Lively's unverified and self-serving narrative."
Left, Justin Baldoni attends the "It Ends With Us" New York premiere on August 6, 2024, in New York City. Right, Blake Lively attends the world premiere of "Another Simple Favor" at The Paramount Theatre...
Left, Justin Baldoni attends the "It Ends With Us" New York premiere on August 6, 2024, in New York City. Right, Blake Lively attends the world premiere of "Another Simple Favor" at The Paramount Theatre on March 7, 2025, in Austin, Texas. Inset, Thomas Canestraro is seen on the set of "And Just Like That..." in New York City on September 17, 2021. More
Gotham/WireImage; Mat Hayward/WireImage; James Devaney/GC Images
What To Know
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Baldoni's body double—stunt actor Thomas Canestraro—said that while the It Ends With Us set was "professional," there was tension.
"You could tell that the set was tense. There was some discomfort from everybody," he said.
Newsweek reached out to Baldoni and Lively's lawyers via email for comment.
Canestraro worked with Lively on 2018's A Simple Favor and added that the experience was "extremely easy," so he felt "comfortable" collaborating together again. This time, however, he said she was "more closed off."
The 38-year-old expected to work a maximum of five days but ended up staying on the project for two weeks.
"What I did experience was filming that was taking longer than expected," Canestraro said of It Ends With Us.
On his first day, the And Just Like That... actor said he saw Reynolds on set.
"I'm like, 'Oh, my God. What a cool thing, it's like when I was in A Simple Favor. What a supportive husband who just came on set to cheer his wife. I just love that about them, that's a cool synergy in that couple.'"
Following the lawsuits, Canestraro thought, "And now I'm like, 'Oh, was Blake already in such a bad place that Ryan just came to make sure that she was okay?'"
"When the whole scandal came after, it was just like, 'Now that explains why things were taking longer. Now that explains why you could sense a discomfort.'"
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively are seen on the set of "It Ends with Us" on January 12, 2024 in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively are seen on the set of "It Ends with Us" on January 12, 2024 in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
What People Are Saying
Following Baldoni's New York Times lawsuit, a spokesperson for the newspaper told Variety: "The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead. Our story was meticulously and responsibly reported. It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including the text messages and emails that we quote accurately and at length in the article. To date, Wayfarer Studios, Mr. Baldoni, the other subjects of the article and their representatives have not pointed to a single error. We published their full statement in response to the allegations in the article as well. We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit."
In February, video footage from It Ends With Us was released by Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, who said it disproved Lively's harassment claims: "The following videos captured on May 23, 2023, clearly refute Ms. Lively's characterization of his behavior. The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to one another. Both actors are clearly behaving well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism."
Lively's lawyers said in a statement to Newsweek at the time: "Every moment of this [footage] was improvised by Mr. Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance, and no intimacy coordinator present. Mr. Baldoni was not only Ms. Lively's co-star, but the director, the head of studio and Ms. Lively's boss. No woman should have to take defensive measures to avoid being touched by their employer without their consent. This matter is in active litigation in federal court."
What Happens Next
A trial date for Baldoni and Lively is scheduled for March 9, 2026.