Blake Lively’s legal team calls Justin Baldoni’s $400M lawsuit ‘desperate’ amid ongoing legal battle

Blake Lively’s legal team dismisses Justin Baldoni’s lawsuit as an attempt to shift focus from harassment claims.

Blake Lively’s legal team has responded to Justin Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit, calling his claims “desperate” and accusing him of using “abuser tactics” to deflect from the sexual harassment allegations she filed earlier. According to Lively’s attorneys, Baldoni’s lawsuit is an attempt to reverse the focus of the situation, claiming it’s part of a strategy to undermine her claims of harassment and retaliation. They describe this as an example of DARVO—“Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim Offender”—a method used to manipulate the narrative.

Lively’s legal team contends that Baldoni and his associates are wrongly portraying her as someone who seized creative control over It Ends With Us, specifically accusing her of alienating the cast. They also emphasize that, according to Sony, Lively was asked to oversee the final cut of the film, which was then distributed successfully. According to Lively’s lawyers, Baldoni’s focus on her involvement with the film is an effort to distract from the real issue: her claims of sexual harassment.

In response to the accusations, Baldoni’s attorney argues that the director has substantial evidence to disprove Lively’s allegations, including unedited text messages, emails, and video footage. They contend that this evidence will prove the defamation and expose the manipulation of the media by Lively’s team. Baldoni’s team also claims that Lively’s team tried to influence public opinion through media statements before any formal legal action was taken.

This ongoing legal battle follows Lively’s December lawsuit, in which she accused Baldoni of creating a hostile work environment on set. According to Lively, Baldoni’s behavior, including uninvited interactions and unprofessional conduct, caused her emotional distress. Baldoni continues to assert his innocence and has filed a separate lawsuit against The New York Times for libel, accusing the publication of misrepresenting his actions.