Justin Baldoni’s lawsuit: Blake Lively responds with a counter statement

The actors Blake Lively (37) and Justin Baldoni (40) have been involved in a public mud fight for weeks, in which the “Just One More Time” director most recently sued his leading actress on January 16th.

He is demanding at least $400 million in damages from Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds (48) and other defendants. The couple therefore tried to steal the film “Just One More Time” and “destroy” Baldoni with false claims. He accuses the defendants of, among other things, a form of blackmail, defamation and violation of his privacy.

Blake Lively’s lawyers responded to the lawsuit with a response shortly after it became public on January 16th. It says: “It’s an age-old story: a woman comes forward with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation, and the perpetrator tries to turn the tables on the victim,” the statement quoted.

Baldoni also falsely claimed that Lively usurped creative control of Just One More Time and alienated the rest of the film crew from the director. According to Lively’s lawyers, several members of the film crew, both other actors and behind-the-scenes workers, had “their own negative experiences with Mr. Baldoni.”

Although Justin Baldoni directed “Just One More Time,” Blake Lively is said to have been in charge of making a cut of the film, which distributor Sony ultimately chose for theatrical release – and which has grossed over $350 million worldwide to date. However, this happened at Sony’s request.

Both Baldoni and Lively’s lawyers promise to present evidence that will support their side of the story in court.

Baldoni’s lawsuit, which was filed yesterday, also goes into many other details from the disputes. For example, Blake Lively is said to have led her good friend Taylor Swift (35) and husband Reynolds into the field in order to implement changes to the script that she favored.

Baldoni also claims that he was “under duress” when he signed a list of 30 of Lively’s demands. After the end of the Hollywood actors’ strike, which interrupted filming of “Just One More Time” in 2023, Lively made this list a prerequisite for her return to the set.

It said that Baldoni and his producer should no longer show Lively or her employees nude videos or images of women, including the producer’s wife. Both should also no longer talk to the actress about Baldoni’s “porn addiction” or mention Lively’s lack of porn consumption. They should also stop describing their own genitals to Lively, and much more. Baldoni signed the document in November 2023.