Blake Lively’s legal complaint against It Ends With Us director Justin Baldoni has gained significant attention, especially after new details emerged from documents filed with the California Civil Rights Department. The actress has accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her on set and later working to damage her reputation in retaliation after she raised concerns about his behavior.
In the filing, Blake claims that Justin and his publicist worked alongside a crisis PR expert to launch a retaliation campaign against her. The complaint includes alleged text conversations where Justin and his team discuss strategies to suppress negative reports about him while simultaneously reinforcing negative stories about Blake. One of the texts reveals Justin sharing an unverified social media post from August 4th that claimed Hailey Bieber had a history of bullying women, suggesting it as a tactic to use against Blake. Justin allegedly told his publicist, “This is what we would need.”
Alongside Hailey Bieber, the complaint also mentions several other celebrities. One document from Justin’s PR team lays out strategies to protect Baldoni’s reputation in case Blake made her grievances public. The document notes that if Blake’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, were to defend her, the PR team should avoid direct engagement and may even consider planting stories about the “weaponization of feminism.” In a controversial move, the document also suggests that public focus could be shifted away from Justin by highlighting Blake’s alleged issues with other stars, including her Gossip Girl co-star Leighton Meester, A Simple Favor co-star Anna Kendrick, and actor Ben Affleck, with whom Blake starred in The Town.
As the legal drama continues to unfold, E! News reached out to Justin’s PR team and all the stars named in the complaint for comment but has yet to receive a response. Meanwhile, Justin’s lawyer, Brian Friedman, has denied Blake’s accusations, claiming they are a “desperate attempt” to repair her public image. He suggested that the negative press surrounding Blake stemmed from her own actions and remarks during the film’s promotional campaign, which were widely observed by the public.
With several high-profile figures and sensitive issues at stake, the legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is set to remain a topic of intense public interest in the coming weeks.
