As a die-hard enthusiast, I can’t help but share my excitement over the latest behind-the-scenes video from “It Ends With Us.” It’s giving me an exclusive peek into the dynamic between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni – two stars that have me completely captivated!
During the ongoing dispute between the cast members over their conduct during the filming of the Colleen Hoover adaptation, footage obtained by TopMob News from Bryan Freedman, legal representative of one of the actors, revealed the cast dancing together while filming a silent dance scene for the movie’s montage.
In an unusual turn of events, both Lively, aged 37, and Baldoni, aged 40, seemed to deviate from their usual roles as Lily and Ryle, respectively, when they were exchanging ideas, all while dancing together.
Lively expressed to Baldoni that she finds it more romantic when we dance and converse because it feels like the perfect moment to share something special, like a kiss, which is what they have been eagerly anticipating.
In a lively manner, she pointed out that her and Ryan Reynolds, her actual spouse, never seem to stop talking when they’re together, and they frequently express amazement at how there just aren’t enough hours in the day for their conversations.
“I think that’s cute,” Baldoni told her. “You guys are really cute.”
Lively quipped, “I think it’s more than cute.”
During a more private instance, Lively playfully commented as Baldoni drew near her neck, “It looks like I’m giving you a bit of my sunless tan.
The Jane the Virgin actor replied with a laugh, “It smells good.”
The scene filming was brought up in Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni. In her complaint, obtained by TopMob News, the former Gossip Girl star claimed that Baldoni “moved closer and slowly trailed his lips from her ear to her neck while saying, ‘it smells wonderful.’
According to the document filed by Lively, none of this conduct was typical for her character. Later, when Lively expressed her disapproval of this behavior, Baldoni replied, “I’m not even drawn to you.
As a devoted follower, I’m sharing that in my countersuit against Lively, as reported by TopMob News, I refuted the sexual harassment claims. Contrarily, I asserted that it was Lively who struggled to follow direction, particularly during our slow dance scene filming, stating they were “inconsistently able to take direction.
In the script, Lively persisted with debates and attempted to guide him during the scene, even though they were supposed to be acting according to their roles. However, it’s important to note that any claim suggesting that this scene was not filmed professionally by Baldoni is refuted with concrete proof.
In addition to the lawsuit, Baldoni claimed Lively made light of needing plastic surgery on his nose and referred to Baldoni and his spouse Emily Baldoni as “sociopaths” after he shared that they frequently gazed intently at each other without speaking.
The backstage footage from the slow dance sequence revealed that Lively and Baldoni were engaging in identical conversations.
Baldoni playfully mentioned that they had maintained eye contact for five minutes, adding that you might find it quite scary,” or “Baldoni humorously stated that they had been looking into each other’s eyes for a full five minutes, implying it could be a daunting experience for others.
Lively replied with a laugh, “I’d be like, ‘Oh no, I found a sociopath.'”
During their dance, Lively and Baldoni bumped foreheads, which made the actress laugh and say playfully, “Feels like we’re only a nose apart.
“I know,” Baldoni replied with a laugh, “and my nose is so big.”
With a touch of humor, he remarked, “Indeed, I’ve been anticipating discussing this matter. There’s still time. We simply need to pause, contact the insurer for a month, and then handle it. Oh, by the way, I was just joking.
In response, Lively’s team has refuted Baldoni’s lawsuit by stating that the original footage completely supports, in every detail, what Miss Lively had previously stated.
In simpler terms, Justin Baldoni’s lawyer might be trying to divert attention from some incriminating evidence by pulling a stunt, but the video evidence is highly incriminating. The video depicts Mr. Baldoni repeatedly making unwanted advances towards Ms. Lively, such as leaning in to attempt a kiss, kissing her forehead, brushing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, complimenting her scent, and engaging in conversation that was out of character for him.
During filming, there was no one present to oversee intimacy, and this is evident in the footage as Lively’s character can be seen leaning away and repeatedly requesting that her co-stars simply talk. Women who have experienced unwanted touching at work will likely identify with Lively’s discomfort. Her attempts to lighten the situation by joking are clear efforts to evade such unwelcome contact. No woman should be compelled to take preventative measures to avoid being touched by their employer without their explicit permission.
For a complete timeline of Lively and Baldoni’s legal battle, keep reading.
Four months following the cinema release of Colleen Hoover’s book “It Ends With Us” adaptation, Blake Lively submitted a complaint to the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) against her co-star Justin Baldoni and his associates on December 20th, as reported by The New York Times.
In the complaint acquired by TopMob News, Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios (Wayfarer), its CEO Jamey Heath, its cofounder Steve Sarowitz, Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel, her company RWA Communications, crisis communications specialist Melissa Nathan, her company The Agency Group PR LLC (TAG), contractor Jed Wallace and his company Street Relations Inc. were named as defendants.
Lively claimed in her complaint that Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates “initiated a complex press and digital strategy in retaliation” for expressing concerns about alleged on-set misconduct—with Lively stating she and other cast and crew members “experienced intrusive, unwelcome, unprofessional, and sexually inappropriate behavior” by Baldoni and Heath.
The actress further asserted that this alleged campaign against her caused significant harm to her personally and professionally. The charges detailed in the complaint involve sexual harassment; retaliation; failure to investigate, prevent, or rectify harassment; aiding and abetting harassment and retaliation; breach of contract; intentional infliction of emotional distress; negligence; false light invasion of privacy and interference with prospective economic advantage.
The following day, an article appeared in The New York Times, detailing a supposed counterattack smear operation orchestrated by Baldoni and his colleagues against Lively, based on her CRD complaint. In the publication, they shared messages from Baldoni, his publicist Abel, and crisis communications expert Nathan, which were included in her complaint. Additionally, readers could access the related court documents on The New York Times‘ official website. Lively expressed her hope to the outlet that her legal action would expose these underhanded retaliatory strategies aimed at harming those who speak out about misconduct and safeguard others potentially targeted in similar situations.
Following the revelation of Lively’s complaint, Bryan Freedman, representing Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and their representatives, vehemently dismissed Lively’s claims. He stated, on the New York Times website, that it was disgraceful for Lively and her team to make such grave and untrue allegations against Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and their representatives. This was supposedly another desperate attempt by Lively to improve her negative image, which stemmed from her own statements and actions during the film’s campaign; public interviews and press activities that were observed in real time, uncensored, allowing for the internet to form its own opinions. He labeled these claims as completely false, excessively sensational, and deliberately salacious, with the intention of causing harm and perpetuating a media narrative.
Freedman also justified Wayfarer’s decision to hire a crisis manager, explaining that this was done before the movie’s marketing campaign. He further clarified that despite this, the representatives of Wayfarer Studios did not take any proactive measures nor retaliate, only responding to incoming media inquiries to ensure balanced and accurate reporting, and monitoring social activity. What is significant about the selectively presented correspondence is the absence of evidence showing that no active steps were taken with the media or otherwise; just internal strategic planning and private communications, which is standard practice among public relations professionals.
After an article by The New York Times was published on December 21, William Morris Endeavor (WME) ended their relationship with Baldoni. Ari Emanuel, CEO of the agency’s parent company Endeavor, confirmed this to the outlet. However, it’s important to note that WME denies Ryan Reynolds, Lively’s husband and a client represented by WME, was responsible for their decision to part ways with Baldoni. This allegation was later made by Baldoni in his lawsuit against The New York Times (more on this below). In response to the claims made in Baldoni’s filing, WME stated that there is no truth to the claim that Reynolds pressured Baldoni’s agent at the Deadpool & Wolverine premiere. They further clarified that Baldoni’s former representative was not present at the Deadpool & Wolverine premiere and that there was never any pressure from Reynolds or Lively at any time for Baldoni to be dropped as a client.
After Lively’s CRD filing and an article in The New York Times, various well-known personalities expressed their support for her allegations against Baldoni. For instance, author Hoover posted on Instagram Stories: “Blake Lively, you have always been honest, kind, supportive, and patient since the day we met…Never change. Never wilt.”
Jenny Slate, who played Ryle’s sister in the show, also showed her backing for Lively. She stated, “As Blake Lively’s co-star and friend, I express my support as she confronts those accused of plotting to damage her reputation.” In a statement to Today on Dec 23rd, Slate added, “I admire Blake’s bravery, commend her, and stand by her side as the truth about this attack comes to light.”
Brandon Sklenar, who played Lily Bloom’s love interest, shared a link to The New York Times article along with the message: “For heaven’s sake, read this!”
Lastly, Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants co-stars America Ferrera, Alexis Bledel, and Amber Tamblyn expressed their solidarity with her.
Liz Plank recently shared on Instagram that she is no longer co-hosting “The Man Enough Podcast”. She expressed gratitude towards her listeners for their trust, companionship, and for making the show special. Although she didn’t specify the reason behind her departure, it followed closely after Lively’s complaint against Baldoni and his associates at Wayfarer. Plank emphasized that she remains dedicated to the values they have built together and looks forward to sharing more updates soon. She also pledged to continue supporting those who fight for justice and hold accountable those who obstruct it.
Stephanie Jones, Baldoni’s ex-publicist, and her agency Jonesworks LLC initiated a lawsuit against Baldoni, his company Wayfarer, his current publicist Abel, and crisis communications specialist Nathan in New York on December 24. According to the lawsuit obtained by NBC News, Abel and Nathan colluded for months to publicly and privately attack Jones and Jonesworks, breach contracts, induce contractual breaches, and steal clients and business opportunities. The defendants secretly coordinated with Baldoni and Wayfarer to launch a smear campaign against Baldoni’s film co-star, then used the resulting crisis to drive a wedge between Jones and Baldoni, falsely blaming Jones for the smear campaign when she had no involvement in it.
Abel worked at Jonesworks until last summer, according to her LinkedIn profile. The lawsuit claims that Abel and Nathan are now falsely accusing Jones of wrongdoing as their own misconduct is exposed, and they are defaming and attacking her in the industry.
Baldoni and Wayfarer, who are no longer clients of Jonesworks, allegedly violated their contractual obligations with Jonesworks and rejected Jones’s attempts to settle the dispute privately through arbitration. TopMob News reached out to the defendants for comment.
According to a statement made to Variety on December 23rd, Lively’s legal team revealed they obtained the texts mentioned in The New York Times article through a subpoena issued to Jonesworks. Freedman, who represents Nathan, Abel, Baldoni, and their Wayfarer associates, further stated that none of his clients were subpoenaed regarding this matter. He also expressed his intention to sue Jones for disclosing messages from Abel’s phone to Lively’s legal team.
On December 31st, Baldoni, Wayfarer, Heath, Sarowitz, Nathan, TAG, Abel, RWA Communications, Wallace, and Street Relations filed a lawsuit against The New York Times. In the lawsuit, it is alleged that The New York Times has committed libel, false light invasion of privacy, promissory fraud, and breach of implied-in-fact contract over an article about a supposed retaliatory smear campaign the plaintiffs conducted against Lively following her concerns regarding misconduct on set.
The plaintiffs claim that the report is false and based largely on Lively’s complaint to CRD. They deny the accusations made in the article and allege that messages cited in the article and complaint were taken out of context. The lawsuit states, “Although it claims to have ‘reviewed these along with other documents,’ The Times relied almost entirely on Lively’s unverified and self-serving narrative, lifting it nearly verbatim while disregarding an abundance of evidence that contradicted her claims and exposed her true motives.”
They also allege that it was Lively, not the plaintiffs, who engaged in a calculated smear campaign. Lively has denied this claim.
In response to the lawsuit, The New York Times plans to “vigorously defend against the lawsuit.” The Times stated, “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.
On the same day, Lively initiated a legal action against Baldoni, Wayfarer, Heath, Sarowitz, It Ends With Us Movie LLC, Nathan, his company TAG, and Abel in New York. The court papers obtained by TopMob News reveal that she is accusing these defendants of sexual harassment, retaliation, neglecting to investigate and address harassment, aiding and abetting such actions, breach of contract, intentionally inflicting emotional distress, negligently causing emotional distress, false light invasion of privacy.
The accusations in the lawsuit mirror those she had previously made in the CRD complaint she filed earlier that month. In response to the lawsuit Baldoni and his associates filed against The New York Times (who are not named as defendants), her legal team stated through TopMob that “the claims in this lawsuit do not alter anything about the allegations in her CRD and federal complaints.”
“This lawsuit is based on the incorrect assumption that Lively’s administrative complaint against Wayfarer and others was a tactic to avoid filing a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer,” they added. “As demonstrated by the federal complaint filed by Lively today, this rationale for the lawsuit is false.
In their legal action against The New York Times, Baldoni and his team have indicated that they are far from finished, suggesting there are more parties involved in the wrongdoing. According to court documents, further lawsuits are expected. In an interview with NBC News on January 2, Baldoni’s attorney Freedman confirmed their intent to also sue Lively.
The discussion surrounding Baldoni and Lively has not ceased, with some social media users suggesting that Reynolds may have poked fun at Baldoni in his film “Deadpool & Wolverine” through the character Nicepool.
Reynolds has remained silent on these rumors, but Baldoni’s lawyer Freedman has expressed his thoughts. During an interview on The Megyn Kelly Show, posted to YouTube on January 7th, Freedman stated:
“From my perspective, if your wife is sexually harassed, you don’t make light of Justin Baldoni’s situation. You treat it seriously. You take appropriate actions like filing HR complaints and following a legal process. What you shouldn’t do is joke about it.
In their recent statement, Ms. Lively’s legal team emphasizes that the lawsuit she filed against Wayfarer and its associates is based on substantial evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation in the workplace. They clarify that this situation isn’t a simple disagreement or “he said/she said” scenario, as alleged by Wayfarer. Instead, they claim that Wayfarer has responded to the lawsuit with additional attacks against Ms. Lively since she filed it.
As the legal proceedings unfold, her lawyers remind everyone that sexual harassment and retaliation are illegal in any professional setting. They warn against tactics used to divert attention from misconduct allegations, such as blaming the victim or reversing the roles of offender and victim. They also assert that these tactics serve to minimize and trivialize serious misconduct claims. Lastly, they emphasize that media statements do not constitute a defense for the allegations against Wayfarer, and they intend to present their case in court.
On January 16th, Baldoni, Heath, Wayfarer, Abel (publicist), Nathan (crisis communication specialist) and It Ends With Us Movie LLC filed a lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds, Leslie Sloane (Lively’s publicist), and Vision PR in New York. The complaint alleges that all defendants have committed civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy through false light. Specifically, Lively and Reynolds are charged with breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, intentional interference with contractual relations, economic advantage, and negligent interference with prospective economic advantage.
The plaintiffs deny Lively’s claims of sexual harassment and a retaliatory smear campaign against her. Instead, they accuse her of seizing control of It Ends With Us and collaborating with Reynolds, Sloane, Jones, and others to harm the plaintiffs’ reputation in the media after she faced criticism for promoting the film. (Lively claims that she promoted the movie according to Sony’s marketing plan.)
In their lawsuit, plaintiffs claim defendants collaborated with The New York Times to release a sensational but untrue news article. The media outlet maintains its report is accurate.
Freedman stated in part to TopMob, “Either Blake Lively was significantly deceived by her team or she deliberately misrepresented the truth.
Lively’s legal team labeled his lawsuit as “a continuation of the manipulation tactics often used by perpetrators,” explaining in a statement to TopMob News, “This situation follows a familiar pattern: A woman presents solid proof of sexual misconduct and backlash, and the offender tries to shift blame onto the accuser. This is what professionals refer to as DARVO – Deny allegations, Attack the accuser, Reverse Victim and Offender roles.
Additionally, she asserted that he responded adversely after she leveled accusations towards him, claiming that Baldoni aims to divert attention from the fact that Lively took creative control and distanced the cast from Mr. Baldoni.
It was further stated that the proof will demonstrate:
1. Various individuals associated with Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer encountered unfavorable encounters with him.
2. The evidence will also reveal that Sony tasked Ms. Lively to supervise Sony’s portion of the film, which they then chose for distribution and ultimately achieved significant success.
Her team went on to slam Baldoni’s reaction to her allegations of harassment.
In a nutshell, their defense against sexual harassment accusations revolves around blaming the victim, implying that she invited it or was at fault. Moreover, they attempt to justify the incident by pointing fingers at her clothing choices. However, as her legal team pointed out, this tactic is futile since it does not dispute the evidence presented in Ms. Lively’s complaint and only serves to shift the focus from the abuse itself.
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2025-01-22 03:18