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Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Blake Lively accused of pressuring Taylor Swift amid legal battle with Justin Baldoni
Blake Lively's friendship with music superstar Taylor Swift is now at the center of her legal battle with her former "It Ends With Us" co-star Justin Baldoni. In a new court filing Wednesday, attorneys for Baldoni claim Lively pressured Swift to get involved in the legal back and forth, which first began in December. That month, Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of "It Ends With Us," which he also directed. Lively and Baldoni subsequently launched dueling lawsuits against each other, with Lively alleging that Baldoni and key stakeholders of the film sexually harassed her and attempted, along with Baldoni's production company and crisis PR company, The Agency Group PR, to orchestrate a smear campaign against her. Baldoni denied the allegations via a statement from his attorney, who called Lively's actions "shameful" for making "serious and categorically false accusations" against Baldoni. Baldoni later sued Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, the couple's publicist Leslie Sloane, and Sloane's public relations company, Vision PR, for extortion and defamation, among other things. Lively's lawyers called Baldoni's lawsuit "another chapter in the abuser playbook" and accused Baldoni of "trying to shift the narrative to Ms. Lively by falsely claiming that she seized creative control and alienated the cast from Mr. Baldoni." Earlier this month, Swift was subpoenaed by Baldoni's lawyer, Bryan Freedman. Lawyers for Lively and Reynolds responded by trying to block the subpoena, which Baldoni's attorneys argued was necessary. Citing "a source," Baldoni's legal team claims in Wednesday's court filing that Lively's attorney "demanded that Ms. Swift release a statement of support for Ms. Lively" amid the legal scuffle, alleging that "if Ms. Swift refused to do so, private text messages of a personal nature in Ms. Lively's possession would be released." Baldoni's attorneys allege in the new filing that, "Lively requested that Taylor Swift delete their text messages." The court filing also claims that "a representative of Ms. Swift addressed these inappropriate and apparently extortionate threats in at least one written communication." In response, Lively's lawyer, Mike Gottlieb, asked the court to strike the documents as "unnecessary, improper and abusive." Gottleib said in a statement to ABC News Wednesday that the allegations made in Baldoni's court filing are "categorically false." "This is categorically false. We unequivocally deny all of these so-called allegations, which are cowardly sourced to supposed anonymous sources, and completely untethered from reality," Gottlieb said. "This is what we have come to expect from the Wayfarer parties' lawyers, who appear to love nothing more than shooting first, without any evidence, and with no care for the people they are harming in the process. We will imminently file motions with the court to hold these attorneys accountable for their misconduct here." Taylor Swift spokesperson responds to subpoena in Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni legal feud Baldoni's initial complaint against Lively, filed in January, detailed a text message he allegedly received from Lively in which Baldoni claims Lively referred to Swift and Reynolds as her "dragons." The complaint claimed Lively leveraged her relationships with high profile individuals like Swift and Reynolds to exert her influence over the film. Swift has not responded to ABC News' request for comment about the latest court filing. In response to being subpoenaed, a spokesperson for Swift said she was only involved in licensing her song "My Tears Ricochet" for the film and was never on set. "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 traveling around the globe during 2023 and 2024 headlining the biggest tour in history," the spokesperson said. "The connection Taylor had to this film was permitting the use of one song, 'My Tears Ricochet.'" The spokesperson added, "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." Lively and Baldoni are due to appear in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on March 9, 2026. Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni's 'It Ends with Us' legal battle: A timeline Read more about the Lively-Baldoni legal battle here. Blake Lively accused of pressuring Taylor Swift amid legal battle with Justin Baldoni originally appeared on
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
Blake Lively accused of pressuring Taylor Swift amid legal battle with Justin Baldoni
Blake Lively's friendship with music superstar Taylor Swift is now at the center of her legal battle with her former "It Ends With Us" co-star Justin Baldoni. In a new court filing Wednesday, attorneys for Baldoni claim Lively pressured Swift to get involved in the legal back and forth, which first began in December. That month, Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of "It Ends With Us," which he also directed. Lively and Baldoni subsequently launched dueling lawsuits against each other, with Lively alleging that Baldoni and key stakeholders of the film sexually harassed her and attempted, along with Baldoni's production company and crisis PR company, The Agency Group PR, to orchestrate a smear campaign against her. Baldoni denied the allegations via a statement from his attorney, who called Lively's actions "shameful" for making "serious and categorically false accusations" against Baldoni. Baldoni later sued Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, the couple's publicist Leslie Sloane, and Sloane's public relations company, Vision PR, for extortion and defamation, among other things. Lively's lawyers called Baldoni's lawsuit "another chapter in the abuser playbook" and accused Baldoni of "trying to shift the narrative to Ms. Lively by falsely claiming that she seized creative control and alienated the cast from Mr. Baldoni." Earlier this month, Swift was subpoenaed by Baldoni's lawyer, Bryan Freedman. Lawyers for Lively and Reynolds responded by trying to block the subpoena, which Baldoni's attorneys argued was necessary. Citing "a source," Baldoni's legal team claims in Wednesday's court filing that Lively's attorney "demanded that Ms. Swift release a statement of support for Ms. Lively" amid the legal scuffle, alleging that "if Ms. Swift refused to do so, private text messages of a personal nature in Ms. Lively's possession would be released." Baldoni's attorneys allege in the new filing that, "Lively requested that Taylor Swift delete their text messages." The court filing also claims that "a representative of Ms. Swift addressed these inappropriate and apparently extortionate threats in at least one written communication." In response, Lively's lawyer, Mike Gottlieb, asked the court to strike the documents as "unnecessary, improper and abusive." Gottleib said in a statement to ABC News Wednesday that the allegations made in Baldoni's court filing are "categorically false." "This is categorically false. We unequivocally deny all of these so-called allegations, which are cowardly sourced to supposed anonymous sources, and completely untethered from reality," Gottlieb said. "This is what we have come to expect from the Wayfarer parties' lawyers, who appear to love nothing more than shooting first, without any evidence, and with no care for the people they are harming in the process. We will imminently file motions with the court to hold these attorneys accountable for their misconduct here." Baldoni's initial complaint against Lively, filed in January, detailed a text message he allegedly received from Lively in which Baldoni claims Lively referred to Swift and Reynolds as her "dragons." The complaint claimed Lively leveraged her relationships with high profile individuals like Swift and Reynolds to exert her influence over the film. Swift has not responded to ABC News' request for comment about the latest court filing. In response to being subpoenaed, a spokesperson for Swift said she was only involved in licensing her song "My Tears Ricochet" for the film and was never on set. "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 traveling around the globe during 2023 and 2024 headlining the biggest tour in history," the spokesperson said. "The connection Taylor had to this film was permitting the use of one song, 'My Tears Ricochet.'" The spokesperson added, "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." Lively and Baldoni are due to appear in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on March 9, 2026.
Hindustan Times
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Blake Lively will be taking the stand against Justin Baldoni in March 2026 trial, shares her lawyer
Blake Lively is owning her narrative. The Another Simple Favor actor and Gossip Girl alum, during a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, made the first straightforward public acknowledgement of her long-standing tussle with former collaboraor Justin Baldoni. And now, her legal counsel is making it known that Blake will in fact, continue to speak up for herself, even in court: "Yes. The ultimate moment for a plaintiff's story to be told is at trial. We expect that to be the case here. So we would, of course, expect her to be a witness at her trial. Of course she's going to testify", said her lawyer Mike Gottlieb in an exclusive byte to PEOPLE. Additionally, Blake isn't the only one who'll be taking the stand. Mike elaborated, "There are individuals that were witnesses to or experienced misconduct that is relevant to Ms. Lively's claims. We expect their testimony, particularly about what took place on set, will come out through live witness testimony". That being said, it is unclear if husband Ryan Reynolds will be taking the stand as well. Mike also made it known that the overflow of public conjecture surrounding the case is actually isolating the core aspects that instead deserve attention. He added, "We think there have been a lot of distractions put up to deflect attention from the retaliation campaign that was launched against he. And we expect and hope that in discovery we'll have an opportunity to really focus on what we believe to be the core part of the case, which is that this retaliation campaign was launched against Ms. Lively for her having raised concerns about sexual harassment". Blake and Justin had previously collaborated on the doomed 2024 film It Ends With Us, the official adaptation of Colleen Hoover's bestselling novel. Following the film's release, Blake filed a lawsuit against Justin and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, alleging sexual harassment and claiming he initiated a preemptive smear campaign. Justin denied the accusations and responded with a $400 million countersuit against Blake, her husband Ryan, their publicist Leslie Sloane, and her agency Vision PR, Inc., alleging defamation, civil extortion, and other charges. The trial is scheduled for March 2026. So are you team Blake or Baldoni?
NDTV
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NDTV
Blake Lively Breaks Silence On Justin Baldoni Legal Drama: "I Do Feel Fortunate That I Have Been Able To..."
New Delhi: The legal drama between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni continues to make headlines. While the actress is currently in the spotlight for the press tour of Another Simple Favor, the aftermath of her last project, It Ends With Us, remains a significant part of her life. Until recently, Blake had maintained silence regarding her ongoing legal dispute with It Ends With Us director and co-star Justin Baldoni. She focused on her work and refrained from making public statements. However, during a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Blake partially broke her silence. Without naming Justin, the actress said, 'It's no surprise I've had a pretty intense year.' 'I see so many women around, afraid to speak – especially right now – afraid to share their experiences. And fear is by design. It's what keeps us silent,' she added. Blake Lively also acknowledged her privilege and position in the larger conversation. 'But I also acknowledge that many people don't have the opportunity to speak. So, I do feel fortunate that I've been able to,' she said. When asked why she has taken such a strong stand, Blake explained, 'It's the women who have had the ability to use their voice that's kept me strong and helped me in my belief and my fight for the world to be safer for women and girls.' For the unversed, Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni worked together on It Ends With Us, which released in 2024. Things took a sharp turn after the movie hit screens. Blake filed a lawsuit against Justin and his company Wayfarer Studios and accused the director of sexual harassment and trying to ruin her reputation before she could speak out. Justin, on his part, has strongly denied everything and hit back with a massive $400 million countersuit. He is going after Blake, her husband Ryan Reynolds, her longtime publicist Leslie Sloane, and her PR firm Vision PR, Inc., claiming defamation, civil extortion, and more. Coming back to Blake Lively's latest film Another Simple Favor, the project is directed by Paul Feig. The movie also features Anna Kendrick, Andrew Rannells, Bashir Salahuddin, and Elizabeth Perkins in key roles. The film serves as a sequel to Blake's 2018 hit A Simple Favor.
Hindustan Times
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Blake Lively officially addresses Justin Baldoni legal drama in new Late Night interview: 'I do feel fortunate...'
Blake Lively is currently flying through the press tour of her latest release, Another Simple Favor, the sequel to 2018 dark comedy thriller A Simple Favor. The ghosts from the It Ends With Us debacle have yet to leave Blake (at least up until March 2026) even as she attempts to skillfully tackle pretty windy rumours of a cold war with her franchise co-star Anna Kendrick. Circling back to the seemingly never ending drama with actor-director Justin Baldoni, the legal crossfire of it all, has had Blake necessarily mum, going about her business. But something changed, during her recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, where though she avoided the details, she went into the rationale of the extremities she was contending with. "It's no surprise I've had a pretty intense year", confirmed Blake. When pushed to elaborate as much as she legally could, by Seth, the actor articulated, "I see so many women around, afraid to speak — especially right now — afraid to share their experiences. And fear is by design. It's what keeps us silent". That being said, Blake has complete cognizance of the fact that she is better placed than most other women in similar situations. She further elaborated, "But I also acknowledge that many people don't have the opportunity to speak. So, I do feel fortunate that I've been able to". Speaking to the reason behind the extreme measures taken, she added, "It's the women who have had the ability to use their voice that's kept me strong and helped me in my belief and my fight for the world to be safer for women and girls". To recap, Blake and Justin previously teamed up for the doomed It Ends With Us (2024), the official film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's bestselling novel of the same name. Following the movie's release, Blake filed a lawsuit against Justin and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, accusing him of sexual harassment and launching a preemptive smear campaign. In response, Justin denied all allegations and countersued Blake, husband Ryan Reynolds, their publicist Leslie Sloane, and her firm Vision PR, Inc., for $400 million citing grounds of defamation, civil extortion, and other claims. The trial date is set for March 2026. As for Another Simple Favor, the film is now streaming on OTT.
