In a recent development, actress Isabela Ferrer from the movie “It Ends With Us” has voiced her opinions in response to Justin Baldoni’s ongoing legal dispute with Blake Lively.
In court papers made public on August 17th, obtained by TopMob News, the 24-year-old actress (who portrayed a younger character of Lily Bloom in the 2024 adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s work) claimed that the director and his associates had behaved in an unprofessional manner towards her following her summoning by Rachel Lively’s legal team as part of the ongoing legal disagreement.
As stated by Ferrer’s lawyers, the actress contacted Baldoni’s production company, Wayfarer Studios, requesting they cover her legal expenses as outlined in her movie contract. However, she was later asked by the company to surrender control over her response to the Lively subpoena to Wayfarer before receiving any compensation.
Moving forward, it was claimed by her legal team that Baldoni attempted to exert manipulative, threatening, controlling behavior, and acted improperly towards Ms. Ferrer. They alleged in court documents that Baldoni filed a motion against Ferrer later on as a form of harassment, after she refused to accept the conditions proposed by his team.
In their submission, Ferrer’s lawyers argue that Baldoni’s motion appears to be another attempt to control media narratives, cause distress for a promising young actress, and breach this court’s rules regarding the disclosure of personal information about non-parties.
According to a statement made by Ms. Ferrer’s legal team in their submission, they have previously needed to fend off inappropriate behavior from Mr. Baldoni that was linked to her reaction to the Lively Subpoena. Furthermore, it has been mentioned that Ms. Ferrer has encountered personal threats and abusive comments on social media since Mr. Baldoni filed his motion against her.
Regrettably, the Motion is part of a larger trend of aggressive behavior towards Ms. Ferrer by Baldoni, as her lawyers asserted. Although Ms. Ferrer intends to honor all legal requirements set forth in any subpoena, summons, or court order, she will not be coerced or pressured into taking part in the proceedings by anyone.
TopMob News has reached out to Baldoni and Lively’s legal teams but hasn’t received comment.
In a recent case, the actress Blake Lively is taking legal action against Ian Baldoni for alleged sexual harassment, claiming he fostered a hostile work environment on the set of the movie “It Ends With Us“. Despite Baldoni denying these accusations, his counterclaim against Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds was dropped in early June. This dismissal occurred after a judge concluded that Baldoni had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that the couple had tarnished his reputation.
A trial has been set for March 2026.
For a complete timeline on Baldoni and Lively’s legal saga, keep reading…
Four months following the theater release of the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s book “It Ends With Us”, Blake Lively filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) against her costar Justin Baldoni and several associates on December 20, as reported by The New York Times.
The defendants listed in the complaint obtained by TopMob News are Baldoni, his production company Wayfarer Studios, its CEO Jamey Heath, co-founder Steve Sarowitz, Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel and her company RWA Communications, crisis communications specialist Melissa Nathan and her company The Agency Group PR LLC (TAG), contractor Jed Wallace and his company Street Relations Inc.
In her complaint, Lively claimed that Baldoni and the Wayfarer associates initiated a complex press and digital strategy in retaliation for expressing concerns about alleged misconduct on set. According to her statement, she and other cast and crew members “endured invasive, unwelcome, unprofessional, and sexually inappropriate behavior” from Baldoni and Heath.
The actress further stated that this campaign against her caused significant harm to both her personal life and career. The allegations detailed in the complaint include sexual harassment; retaliation; failure to address, prevent, or remedy 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, The New York Times released an exposé detailing a supposed counter-attack smear strategy allegedly carried out by Baldoni and his colleagues against Lively. This was in response to her CRD complaint, which the report referenced. The article featured communications from Baldoni, Abel (his publicist), and Nathan (crisis management specialist) that were included in her complaint. Additionally, readers had access to view the court documents on The New York Times‘ website. In response, Lively told the outlet, “I hope my legal action will lift the veil on these underhanded retaliatory tactics aimed at silencing those who expose misconduct, and protect others who may find themselves in similar situations.
As a loyal supporter, I’d like to share my perspective on a recent turn of events. Following the announcement of Lively’s complaint, Bryan Freedman, who represents Baldoni, Wayfarer, and their associates, has strongly refuted these allegations against him, Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and their representatives.
In a statement published on The New York Times website, he expressed his disappointment over Lively’s claims as an underhanded attempt to remedy her tarnished reputation stemming from her own comments and actions during the film campaign, as well as interviews and press activities that were witnessed live and unedited. Freedman described these accusations as baseless, outrageous, and intentionally sensationalized with the aim of damaging their reputation and perpetuating a negative narrative in the media.
Furthermore, Freedman defended Wayfarer’s decision to engage a crisis manager before launching the film’s marketing campaign. In addition, he clarified that while Wayfarer’s representatives didn’t take any proactive or retaliatory actions, they only responded to incoming media inquiries to maintain balanced and accurate reporting and kept track of social media activity.
Notably, Freedman pointed out that the selective correspondence provided by Lively lacked evidence of a lack of proactive measures with the media or otherwise; it instead showed internal planning and private communication among public relations professionals, which is standard practice in the industry.
William Morris Endeavor (WME) distanced themselves from Baldoni following the publication of an article in The New York Times on December 21, with Ari Emanuel, CEO of the agency’s parent company Endeavor, confirming this to the outlet. However, it’s important to note that WME has denied any involvement by Ryan Reynolds, Lively’s husband, in Baldoni’s departure from the agency. This allegation was later made by Baldoni in his lawsuit against The New York Times (for more details on that, see below). In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter on January 1, WME clarified that Baldoni’s claim of pressure from Reynolds at the Deadpool & Wolverine premiere is false. They added that Baldoni’s former representative was not present at the premiere and neither Reynolds nor Lively ever exerted any pressure to drop Baldoni as a client.
@blakelively, you have always been truthful, kind, helpful, and patient since the first time we met. Thank you for being the person you are. Never change. Never falter.”
Jenny Slate, who played Baldoni’s character Ryle’s sister, also expressed her support for Lively. In a statement to Today on December 23rd, she said: “As Blake Lively’s castmate and friend, I express my backing as she takes action against those accused of orchestrating an attack on her reputation.” She added that Lively is a leader, a reliable friend, and a source of emotional support for many. “What has been disclosed about the attack on Blake is dreadfully dark, disturbing, and completely threatening,” she continued. “I applaud my friend, I respect her courage, and I stand by her.”
Brandon Sklenar, who played Lively’s character Lily Bloom’s love interest, shared a link to The New York Times article on his social media, writing: “For the love of God, read this.”
Lastly, America Ferrera, Alexis Bledel, and Amber Tamblyn-Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants co-stars-expressed their solidarity with her.
As a devoted fan, I’m compelled to share some exciting news with you all. On Instagram, I recently announced my decision to step down as co-host of our cherished podcast, The Man Enough. Over the past four years, this community has been like no other – we’ve shared hearts, stories, and created something truly unique together.
While I won’t delve into the specifics just yet, you might have heard about recent events that led to this change. Regardless, know that I remain steadfast in my commitment to the values we’ve nurtured and cherished as a group.
As one chapter comes to a close for me, I look forward to what lies ahead. Rest assured, I’ll be sharing more updates soon as I continue to process everything. In the meantime, I’ll continue to stand with those who fight against injustice and hold accountable those who obstruct progress.
Thank you for being here, for trusting me, and for standing by my side throughout this journey. Together, we can create better days ahead.
In a lawsuit filed against him in New York on Christmas Eve, Baldoni’s former publicist Stephanie Jones and her agency Jonesworks LLC accuse Baldoni, his company Wayfarer, his current publicist Abel, and crisis communications specialist Nathan of conspiring to smear Jones’s reputation. The complaint alleges that Abel and Nathan orchestrated a months-long campaign to defame Jones, breach contracts, and poach clients. Behind Jones’s back, they coordinated with Baldoni and Wayfarer to launch an aggressive media attack against one of Baldoni’s co-stars and then falsely blame Jones for the smear campaign. Abel and Nathan are also accused of continuing to defame Jones as their misconduct is exposed. The lawsuit claims that Baldoni and Wayfarer breached their contractual obligations with Jonesworks and refused to settle the dispute privately. The defendants have not yet responded to requests for comment.
According to a statement made to Variety on December 23rd, Lively’s legal team obtained the texts mentioned in The New York Times article through a subpoena sent to Jonesworks. Freedman, who represents Nathan, Abel, Baldoni, and Wayfarer associates, further stated that none of his clients were subpoenaed on this matter and he plans to sue Jones for disclosing messages from Abel’s phone to Lively’s lawyers.
Baldoni, Wayfarer, Heath, Sarowitz, Nathan, TAG, Abel, RWA Communications, Wallace and Street Relations filed a $250 million lawsuit against The New York Times Dec. 31.
In the suit obtained by TopMob, The New York Times was accused of libel, false light invasion of privacy, promissory fraud and breach of implied-in-fact contract for its article about a retaliatory smear campaign the plaintiffs allegedly conducted against Lively after she voiced concerns about purported misconduct on set.
Saying the report was “false” and based on Lively’s CRD complaint, the plaintiffs denied the accusations and alleged messages cited in the article and complaint were taken out of context.
“Despite its claim to have ‘reviewed these along with other documents[,]’ the Times relied almost entirely on Lively’s unverified and self-serving narrative,” the lawsuit said, “lifting it nearly verbatim while disregarding an abundance of evidence that contradicted her claims and exposed her true motives.”
They alleged “it was Lively, not Plaintiffs, who engaged in a calculated smear campaign.” She denied this.
The New York Times said it planned to “vigorously defend against the lawsuit.”
“The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead,” it stated to TopMob. “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, Nathan’s company TAG, and Abel in New York. The court documents show that she is accusing the defendants of sexual harassment, retaliation, failing to address harassment, aiding and abetting harassment and retaliation, breach of contract, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and false light invasion of privacy.
The details of her allegations were initially outlined in the complaint she filed with the CRD earlier that month. Regarding the lawsuit Baldoni and his associates filed against The New York Times-which did not name Lively as a defendant-her lawyers stated that it doesn’t alter anything about the claims in her CRD and federal complaints.
In response to their statement, Lively’s attorneys asserted that the premise of the lawsuit against Wayfarer et al. is false. They explained that the idea that Lively’s administrative complaint was a ruse designed to avoid filing a lawsuit against Baldoni and Wayfarer, and that litigation was not her ultimate goal, is baseless. This, they added, is contradicted by the federal complaint filed by Lively today.
In the legal action brought by Baldoni and his team against The New York Times, the plaintiffs communicated that their actions are not yet concluded. As suggested in court documents, there are still other parties involved, and it’s important to note that this may not be the final lawsuit they intend to file.
During an interview with NBC News on January 2, Baldoni and Freedman (their attorney) stated unequivocally that legal action against Lively is indeed something they are planning.
The news about Baldoni and Lively didn’t end there. For one example, social media users hypothesized that Reynolds made fun of Baldoni in his film Deadpool & Wolverine through the character Nicepool.
Reynolds has not spoken publicly on these rumors; however, Baldoni’s lawyer Freedman expressed his opinion.
“In my view,” Freedman stated during an interview on The Megyn Kelly Show (available on YouTube as of Jan 7), “if your wife is sexually harassed, you don’t joke about Justin Baldoni. You don’t make light of the situation. Instead, you handle it seriously. You file complaints through Human Resources and follow legal procedures. What you shouldn’t do is mock the person and turn it into a jest.
In a statement made to TopMob News on January 7th, Ms. Lively’s legal team asserted that the ongoing litigation against Wayfarer and its associates in the Southern District of New York is not a mere disagreement or he-said-she-said situation. Instead, it centers around substantial allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation, supported by solid evidence. The legal team further stated that since Lively filed her lawsuit, there have been additional attacks against her.
The lawyers emphasized the importance of recognizing that sexual harassment and retaliation are unacceptable in any professional setting or industry. They also cautioned against common tactics employed to divert attention from such allegations, such as attempting to label the victim as the instigator or the one responsible for the misconduct. Furthermore, they stressed that another tactic is to swap the roles of the offender and the victim. These strategies, according to the legal team, serve to downplay and trivialize severe misconduct claims. They concluded by stating that media statements are not a defense against Lively’s accusations and that they will vigorously pursue her claims in court.
In response, lawyer Freedman told TopMob, “It’s ironic indeed that Blake Lively is claiming Justin Baldoni is using the media as a weapon, when it appears her own team leaked unfairly edited documents to the New York Times before even filing the complaint.” He further stated, “We are revealing all the proof showing a history of harassment and threats aimed at controlling the movie. This shouldn’t be unexpected given her previous pattern of using others to bully her way to get what she wanted. We have the evidence and much more to back this up.
In a lawsuit filed against Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Sloane (Lively’s publicist) and Vision PR in New York on January 16th, Baldoni, Heath, Wayfarer, publicist Abel, crisis communication specialist Nathan, and It Ends With Us Movie LLC accused the defendants of civil extortion, defamation, false light invasion of privacy, breach of good faith, interfering with contracts, and negligence. The plaintiffs deny Lively’s claims of sexual harassment and a smear campaign in response to her marketing actions for It Ends With Us. Instead, they allege that she seized control of the film, worked with Reynolds, Sloane, Jones, and others to tarnish the plaintiffs’ reputation in the media after facing backlash for her film promotion tactics. (Lively claims in her filings that she followed Sony’s marketing plan.) The plaintiffs also accuse the defendants of collaborating with The New York Times to release a misleading and false report about them. The outlet has defended its report. In a statement to TopMob, Freedman said, “Blake Lively was either deceived by her team or intentionally misrepresented the truth.
A woman presents solid proof of sexual harassment and retaliation, and the abuser tries to shift blame onto the victim. This strategy is often referred to as DARVO – Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim Offender.”
Furthermore, they accused Baldoni of retaliating after Lively’s accusations, claiming that he is attempting to manipulate the narrative to suggest that Lively took creative control and distanced the cast from him.
The statement continued by suggesting that evidence will reveal both the cast and others had negative experiences with Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer. Additionally, they stated that Sony asked Lively to oversee their cut of the film, which was subsequently chosen for distribution and proved successful.
she wanted it, it’s her fault. Their explanation for why this happened to her: look at what she was wearing.” Essentially, while the victim focuses on the abuse, the abuser focuses on attacking the victim. This tactic is desperate and will not refute the evidence presented in Lively’s complaint.
As a lifestyle expert, I’d rephrase it like this:
In an exclusive release, the legal team representing Baldoni shared previously unseen footage from the filming of ‘It Ends With Us’. They stated that the actor’s actions in the video contradict Ms. Lively’s portrayal of him, arguing that the scene in question was intended to depict the characters falling in love and yearning for closeness. The lawyers emphasized that both actors were acting professionally and respectfully within the context of the scene.
However, Lively’s legal team maintains that the video supports her account in the lawsuit, claiming that Baldoni improvised certain actions without prior discussion or consent. They told TopMob News that the footage shows Lively leaning away and repeatedly asking for a dialogue between the characters, which many women who have experienced workplace harassment may recognize as discomfort.
In simpler terms, they wrote to the judge asking him to silence Freedman, who leads Baldoni’s lawyers, during their trial to prevent any inappropriate behavior.
During the production of the movie “It Ends With Us,” a voice memo from director Baldoni was leaked online. In this memo, he seemed to discuss the rooftop scene that Lively had rewritten, mentioning an alleged meeting with Reynolds and their friend Taylor Swift regarding the changes. He praised them, saying, “We should all have friends like that, aside from the fact that they’re two of the most creative people on the planet. The three of you together is incredible.” In the recording, Baldoni also appeared to apologize to Lively for his initial cool reaction to her script, stating, “I messed up. One thing you should know about me is that I will admit and apologize when I make a mistake.
With each passing day after Lively’s formal legal action against Baldoni, I found myself eagerly awaiting the court date. Finally, it arrived on my calendar: March 9, 2026, a date that felt like an eternity but also passed too quickly.
As a dedicated follower, I’m sharing an update on my part. My legal team has made some adjustments to my initial counterclaim filed against Lively, Reynolds, Sloane, and their PR company Vision PR, Inc., with the U.S. District Court on January 16. New documents reveal that we have now included The New York Times in our amended claim.
In this revised document, I accuse Lively and her associates of engaging in collusive activities for months, disseminating untruths to The New York Times. The filing alleges that the newspaper selectively chose and manipulated communications, stripping them of essential context, and intentionally edited these exchanges to mislead.
Baldoni unveiled a website detailing his lawsuit against Lively, including his revised complaint and a chronology of significant events. This chronology reportedly contained purported screenshots of messages exchanged between Lively, Reynolds, and Baldoni.
The launch of the website occurred a month after Freedman stated that they would be releasing all text messages between both parties.
“We want the truth to come to light,” Baldoni’s lawyer said in an interview with NBC News on Jan. 2. “We want the documents to be accessible. We want people to make their own judgements based on the evidence we provide.”
The legal team for Ms. Lively submitted an updated court document asserting that two additional female colleagues who worked on ‘It Ends With Us’ had expressed discomfort due to Mr. Baldoni’s conduct on set, besides Ms. Lively herself. As stated in the court filing obtained by TopMob News, Mr. Baldoni was informed about these complaints at the time and acknowledged them in writing. Contrary to the Defendants’ fabricated narrative, it is important to note that other women apart from Ms. Lively had shared their discomfort with his behavior. The names of the two witnesses were omitted from the amended complaint due to the hostile environment created by the Defendants, which includes threats, harassment, and intimidation. In response to TopMob’s inquiry, Freedman dismissed the complaint as filled with “unsubstantiated hearsay” and claimed that those unidentified individuals are no longer willing to support Ms. Lively’s claims or come forward publicly.
Following Baldoni’s accusations against Sloane of spreading harmful rumors depicting him as a sexual harasser and coordinating a defamation scheme instigated by Lively, Sloane subsequently requested to be removed from the ongoing lawsuit.
According to documents acquired by TopMob News, Sloane’s lawyer argued that there was no justification for the claims leveled against their client and that she had been unwittingly drawn into the lawsuit as a means of creating confusion to divert attention away from Lively’s allegations, essentially using her as a smokescreen.
As an overly enthusiastic admirer, I can’t help but share the thrilling news: Lively, in her astute wisdom, has welcomed Nick Shapiro, a renowned figure who previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff at the CIA, aboard her team. His role? To offer strategic guidance on the intricate legal communications surrounding the ongoing sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit unfolding in the Southern District of New York. This revelation was casually dropped by a team member from Willkie Farr & Gallagher to Variety on February 28, but for me, it’s a game-changer!
Shapiro, who served for the CIA between 2013 and 2015 during the Obama administration, later moved on to become Visa’s vice president of global security and communications, followed by taking up the role of Airbnb’s global head of crisis management. After spending three years at the rental company, he established his own consulting business named 10th Avenue Consulting LLC.
The New York Times recently requested to be removed from a $400 million lawsuit, according to reports by TopMob News. This lawsuit also involves Emily Lively, Cedric the Entertainer Baldoni, and both Sloanes, as well as Sloane’s company.
The filing by the newspaper stated that Baldoni’s team was presenting a biased account that received significant media attention, but maintained that “The New York Times” should not be involved in this legal dispute.
Furthermore, it was mentioned that the initial $250 million lawsuit filed by Baldoni and his Wayfarer colleagues against “The New York Times” was dropped following the addition of “The New York Times” to a subsequent $400 million lawsuit, as documented in court papers obtained by Deadline.
After The New York Times asked for dismissal, U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman agreed to temporarily pause the exchange of information or documents between parties, as per a request known as a stay of discovery. This was granted following an examination of The New York Times’ motion filed on February 28.
In the subsequent document dated March 4, Judge Liman stated that The New York Times presented “solid reasons” and demonstrated a strong likelihood that their motion to dismiss would be successful. He further expressed that Baldoni’s team would not be unduly harmed by this stay while the court considers the pending motion.
In response, a spokesperson for The New York Times told TopMob News, “We are pleased with today’s court decision, which acknowledges the significant First Amendment issues at hand. This ruling prevents Mr. Baldoni from burdening The Times with unnecessary discovery requests in a case that should not have been initiated against us.
As a loyal supporter, I find myself in a position where I’m compelled to share an interesting turn of events. Recently, Baldoni accused Lively of employing our mutual friendship with Swift to gain more creative control over “It Ends With Us.” His legal team even intended to summon the singer. However, a representative for Swift swiftly responded to these claims.
According to the representative’s statement on May 9th, Taylor Swift has never been present on the movie set. She had no role in casting or creative choices, didn’t compose the music for the film, and neither watched any edits nor provided feedback on it.
The representative further explained that Taylor Swift’s connection to the movie was due to allowing a single track, “My Tears Ricochet,” to be featured. Since nineteen other artists also licensed songs for the film, this court document subpoena is strategically exploiting Taylor Swift’s name to generate public attention via sensationalized news articles, rather than focusing on the actual details of the case.
Baldoni’s attorneys withdrew their request later that month, per Lively’s legal team.
As a devoted follower, I’d rephrase it as: The judge ruled in favor of dismissing the countersuit aimed at Lively, Reynolds, Sloane, Vision PR, and The New York Times. This decision was made because Baldoni and his legal team did not provide sufficient evidence to support their claims of defamation or civil extortion.
On Instagram Stories, Lively expressed that she, like many others, has experienced the hurt of a countersuit, along with the humiliation intended to undermine us. Even though her lawsuit was dropped, she highlighted that numerous individuals lack the means to defend themselves.
She expressed, ‘I am filled with love and appreciation towards those who have supported me. Though I may not personally know all of you, my gratitude is unwavering. I shall always advocate for each and every one of you.’
Instead, Baldoni’s lawyer informed TopMob News through a statement that Lively’s claim of victory was actually misleading.
As a devoted supporter, I’d rephrase it like this: “Regarding the matter at hand, it involves unfounded claims of sexual harassment and retaliation, together with an alleged smear campaign that mysteriously lacks substantiation. Interestingly, Ms. Lively’s own group characterizes these incidents as ‘untraceable,’ suggesting they can’t validate occurrences that supposedly never took place.
Lively attended a legal session at her lawyers’ office in New York. Contrary to some news reports suggesting a heated confrontation between Lively and Baldoni, her legal team later disputed the story that she required a big group of people to testify.
According to Lively’s lawyer’s assertion, Baldoni was indeed present in the same room along with the other defendants mentioned in the lawsuit and their legal representatives.
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