Justin Baldoni makes desperate bid to block evidence from jury in Blake Lively lawsuit
The It Ends With Us legal drama continues, as Justin Baldoni is seeking to block evidence in the trial from several women, including co-star Jenny Slate and author Colleen Hoover.
Baldoni, 42, acted and directed the romance film based on a book of the same name by Hoover and co-starred with Blake Lively, 38, as the lead characters and love interests.
However, following the movie's release in August 2024, a very high-profile legal battle broke out between the two celebrities, and it's still ongoing.
In December 2024, Lively filed a lawsuit, which accused Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, of sexual harassment and retaliation, alleging the director had launched a 'smear campaign' against her after she complained about on-set conditions.
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But at the beginning of the month, Judge Lewis Liman threw out 10 of 13 allegations in Lively's case, including harassment and defamation. He left in place breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation.
Their trial for this is scheduled to start on 18 May.
Baldoni and Wayfarer had also countersued Lively and her husband, Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of defamation and extortion.
However, the judge dismissed Baldoni’s claims last June as it was ruled that the director couldn't sue Lively for defamation over claims she made in her lawsuit, because allegations made in a lawsuit are exempt from libel claims.
Now, the latest update in the legal saga is that Baldoni is opposing a move by Lively's lawyers to cite the alleged experiences of seven other women at trial, as per NBC News.
The publication reports that the actor's attorneys filed a motion on Friday (10 April) requesting that the judge block evidence 'of the alleged bad experiences of other women'.
In his filing, Baldoni said that the evidence in question, which centres on the alleged experiences of seven other women, is a 'grab bag of awkward comments, minor confrontations, and perceived slights'.
The women listed are:
- Jenny Slate - Baldoni's It Ends With Us co-star
- Author Colleen Hoover
- Producer Alex Saks
- Isabela Ferrer - another It Ends With Us co-star
- Script writer Christy Hall
- The co-host of Baldoni and Jamey Heath’s podcast, Liz Plank
- Claire Ayoub, a director who worked with Baldoni on a different film
The filing detailed one piece of evidence that came from Slate, who played Allysa in the movie.
It read: "Specifically, Slate complained to Lively that Baldoni said Slate looked ‘sexy’ in her character’s wardrobe (a pair of black leather pants), was ‘unprofessional,’ and sometimes made awkward jokes."
The actress allegedly mentioned this to producer Alex Saks and 'received a prompt apology from Baldoni, and experienced no further incidents'.
The filing said: "Slate herself testified that she felt her issues were adequately resolved on set."
It also argued that Hoover 'played no part in Lively’s workplace experience. She had no contractual right to participate in the film and was not present on set'.
Baldoni's filing argued that because neither Plank nor Ayoub worked on the movie itself, their concerns are 'distinct' and 'not similar to the concerns Lively professed to have about sexualized comments and encounters'.
It read: "The incidents in question are so attenuated from any actionable discrimination claim that they will serve only to waste time and confuse the jury about what is and is not relevant."
Attorneys argued that Lively was not aware of the 'other bad act incidents' during the filming of the movie, except for the comment towards Slate.
“Such evidence, therefore, does little to establish the existence of a hostile work environment," the filing concluded.
Tyla has contacted reps for Baldoni, Lively, and Wayfarer for comment.
Topics: Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively, Celebrity, Entertainment, TV And Film, Crime
Madison Burgess