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How Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni’s Legal Battle Ended in Settlement

Watch: Justin Baldoni Breaks Silence on ‘It Ends With Us’ Legal Battle With Blake Lively

It ends with Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni both trying to move on.

But two years ago, the media frenzy surrounding their movie It Ends With Us was just beginning. Based on Colleen Hoover’s novel of the same name, the film—which Lively and Baldoni starred in and he also directed—debuted in theaters Aug. 9, 2024. And while social media users sensed tension between the two actors after the premiere and press tour, fans never anticipated the contentious legal battle that started just four months later.

Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni, his production company Wayfarer Studios and several associates in December 2024, accusing them of launching a smear campaign to ruin her reputation in retaliation of her voicing concern about sexual harassment she said she experienced on the film’s set from him and others. Baldoni and Wayfarer’s legal team vehemently denied the allegations.

Then in January 2025, Baldoni, Wayfarer and others filed a lawsuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and her publicist in which they accused them of defamation and extortion. They alleged Lively seized control of the movie and worked to “tar and feather” them in the press after she received backlash for her promotion of the film. Lively’s attorneys slammed the accusations.

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Blake Lively Requests $8 Million in Legal Fees From Justin Baldoni After It Ends With Us Settlement

A judge subsequently dismissed Baldoni and Wayfarer’s countersuit in June 2025, stating they did not prove their claims of defamation and extortion. However, the legal battle did not end there. In April 2026, a judge dismissed 10 of the 13 claims in Lively’s lawsuit. This included her sexual harassment accusation, with the judge noting she could not present the allegation as a violation of the laws cited in her suit because she was an independent contractor versus an employee for the film. Still, she expressed her intent to bring her remaining claims—including of retaliation—to court.

However, two weeks before Lively and Baldoni were set to go to trial, their attorneys announced a settlement had been reached.

“The end product—the movie It Ends With Us— is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life,” their lawyers said in a joint statement obtained by NBC News May 4. “Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors—and all survivors—is a goal that we stand behind.”

The attorneys also said they “acknowledge the process presented challenges and recognize concerns raised by Ms. Lively deserved to be heard.”

“We remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments,” they added. “It is our sincere hope that this brings closure and allows all involved to move forward constructively and in peace, including a respectful environment.”

Taylor Hill/FilmMagic; James Devaney/GC Images

The settlement news didn’t fully bring the legal saga to an end though. In June, Lively’s lawyers filed a motion stating she’s seeking about $8 million from Baldoni and the Wayfarer parties for attorneys’ fees and litigation costs. A judge granted Lively’s request for attorneys fees but not for damages, with court documents stating Baldoni and Wayfarer provided no evidence that she acted with malice by bringing her allegations forward. Her attorneys Esra Hudson and Michael Gottlieb also told E! News she “may seek damages using different procedural mechanisms.”

For Baldoni and Wayfarer’s part, their attorney Bryan Freedman told E! News Lively “received nothing” in the settlement and continued to deny her allegations, saying, “There was no sexual harassment. There was no retaliation. There was no smear campaign.”

The courts have yet to determine how much Lively could receive in attorneys fees. However, Baldoni and Wayfarer filed an opposition in July and argued the amount “should be denied in its entirety” or, “at minimum,” be reduced “substantially,” per court documented obtained by USA Today.

While Lively and Baldoni’s case didn’t go to trial, it did play out in the court of public opinion. Throughout the nearly year-and-a-half legal battle, social media users gave their takes as filings, voice memos, behind-the-scenes footage and Lively’s personal texts with Taylor Swift over the situation and state of their friendship made headlines.

Still, Lively and Baldoni are carrying on with their lives and resurfacing more in public. In recent months, the Gossip Girl actress has attended events like the 2026 Met Gala—walking the steps hours after the settlement announcement—and the World Cup final (although, she and Reynolds were notably absent from Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding in July).

As for the Jane the Virgin actor, he and his wife Emily Baldoni posted a video on Instagram in July, acknowledging why they had “not spoken publicly for the better part of the last two years.”

As both parties move forward, here’s a look back at their case.

Lisa/Shutterstock; AFF-USA/Shutterstock

Dec. 20, 2024: Blake Lively Files CRD Complaint Against Justin Baldoni & His Wayfarer AssociatesFour months after the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover‘s book It Ends With Us debuted in theaters, Blake Lively filed a California Civil Rights Department (CRD) complaint against her costar Justin Baldoni and his associates on Dec. 20, according to The New York Times.In the complaint obtained by E! News, Baldoni, his production company 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 listed as defendants.Lively alleged in her complaint that Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates “embarked on a sophisticated press and digital plan in retaliation” for her voicing her concerns about purported misconduct on set—with her saying she and other cast and crew members “experienced invasive, unwelcome, unprofessional and sexually inappropriate behavior” by Baldoni and Heath.The actress added the alleged campaign against her caused “substantial harm” to her personally and professionally. The accusations listed in the complaint include sexual harassment; retaliation; failure to investigate, prevent and/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.

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Dec. 21, 2024: The New York Times Publishes Report About the Alleged Smear Campaign Against LivelyThe next day, The New York Times published a report about a retaliatory smear campaign Baldoni and his associates allegedly waged against Lively—citing her CRD complaint. In its article, the outlet quoted messages sent from Baldoni and his team—including publicist Abel and crisis communications specialist Nathan—that were part of her complaint. Readers could also scroll through the court documents on The New York Times‘ website. “I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct,” Lively told the outlet, “and helps protect others who may be targeted.”

Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images/Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Sony Pictures

Dec. 21, 2024: Baldoni & Wayfarer’s Attorney Responds to Lively’s CRD ComplaintAfter news of Lively’s complaint broke, Bryan Freedman—the attorney for Baldoni, Wayfarer and its representatives—slammed Lively’s allegations.“It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions,” he said in a statement on The New York Times website. “These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.”Freedman also defended Wayfarer’s decision to hire a crisis manager, saying this was done before the marketing campaign of the movie.”The representatives of Wayfarer Studios still did nothing proactive nor retaliated, and only responded to incoming media inquiries to ensure balanced and factual reporting and monitored social activity,” he later added. “What is pointedly missing from the cherry-picked correspondence is the evidence that there were no proactive measures taken with media or otherwise; just internal scenario planning and private correspondence to strategize which is standard operating procedure with public relations professionals.”

Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images

Dec. 21, 2024: Baldoni Is Dropped by Talent AgencyTalent agency William Morris Endeavor (WME) dropped Baldoni after The New York Times’ article was published on Dec. 21, Ari Emanuel, CEO of the agency’s parent company Endeavor, confirmed to the outlet.However, WME denied that Lively’s husband Ryan Reynolds was to blame for the agency’s parting of ways with Baldoni, which the It Ends With Us director later alleged in his lawsuit filed against The New York Times (more on that below). “In Baldoni’s filing there is a claim that Reynolds pressured Baldoni’s agent at the Deadpool & Wolverine premiere. This is not true,” WME—which also represents Reynolds and Lively—said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter Jan. 1. “Baldoni’s former representative was not at the Deadpool & Wolverine premiere nor was there any pressure from Reynolds or Lively at any time to drop Baldoni as a client.”

John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images

Dec. 21, 2024: It Ends With Us Cast Members & More Stars React to Lively’s Allegations Against Baldoni
In the days following Lively’s CRD filing and The New York Times article, several famous figures shared their reactions to her allegations against Baldoni—including It Ends With Us author Hoover.”@blakelively, you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met,” she wrote on Instagram Stories Dec. 21, linking out to The New York Times. “Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt.”Jenny Slate, who played the sister of Baldoni’s character Ryle, also noted she stood with Lively.“As Blake Lively’s castmate and friend, I voice my support as she takes action against those reported to have planned and carried out an attack on her reputation,” Slate said in a Dec. 23 statement to Today. “Blake is a leader, loyal friend and a trusted source of emotional support for me and so many who know and love her.”“What has been revealed about the attack on Blake is terribly dark, disturbing, and wholly threatening,” she added. “I commend my friend, I admire her bravery, and I stand by her side.”In addition, Brandon Sklenar—a love interest for Lively’s character Lily Bloom—shared a screenshot of the complaint published to The New York Times‘ website and linked out to the outlet writing, “For the love of God read this.”Plus, Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants costarsAmerica Ferrera, Alexis Bledel and Amber Tamblyn wrote they “stand with her in solidarity.”

Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for The Ford Foundation

Dec. 23, 2024: Baldoni & Heath’s Cohost on The Man Enough Podcast Leaves Show Liz Plank also announced her departure from The Man Enough Podcast, which she cohosted with Baldoni and Heath, on Dec. 23.”I’m writing to you today to let you know that I have had my representatives inform Wayfarer that I will no longer be co-hosting The Man Enough podcast,” she wrote on Instagram at the time. “Thank you for trusting me with your hearts and stories, for holding space for mine, and for making this show what it was. I will miss you, the listeners, so much. I love what this community created together with every fiber of my being, and that’s because of you.”While Plank did not give a reason for her exit from the podcast, it came days after Lively’s complaint against Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates.”As this chapter closed for me, I remain committed to the values we’ve built together,” the author continued in her message to her followers. “Thank you for being here, for trusting me, and for being by my side for the last four years. We all deserve better, and I know that together, we can create it.”She added, “I will have more to share soon as I continue to process everything that has happened. In the meantime, I will continue to support everyone who calls out injustice and holds the people standing in their way accountable.”

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Dec. 24, 2024: Baldoni’s Former Publicist Sues Him, Abel, Nathan & WayfarerBaldoni’s former publicist Stephanie Jones and her agency Jonesworks LLC filed a lawsuit against him, his company Wayfarer, his current publicist Abel and crisis communications specialist Nathan in New York Dec. 24.”Defendants Abel and Nathan secretly conspired for months to publicly and privately attack Jones and Jonesworks, to breach multiple contracts and induce contractual breaches, and to steal clients and business prospects,” the lawsuit obtained by NBC New reads. “Behind Jones’s back, they secretly coordinated with Baldoni and Wayfarer to implement an aggressive media smear campaign against Baldoni’s film co-star, and then used the crisis as an opportunity to drive a wedge between Jones and Baldoni, and to publicly pin blame for this smear campaign on Jones—when Jones had no knowledge or involvement in it.”Per Abel’s LinkedIn profile, she worked at Jonesworks until last summer. The lawsuit alleges Abel and Nathan “continue to point the finger falsely at Jones now that their own misconduct is coming to light,” and “defame and attack” her in the industry.As for Baldoni and Wayfarer, who are no longer Jonesworks clients, the suit alleges they “repudiated their contractual obligations with Jonesworks and rebuffed Jones’s efforts to settle this dispute privately in arbitration.”E! News reached out to the defendants for comment.

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Lively’s attorneys told Variety in a Dec. 23 piece that they obtained the texts featured in The New York Times article via a subpoena to Jonesworks. Freedman—who represents Nathan and Abel in addition to Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates—added to the outlet none of his clients were subpoenaed over this topic and that he intended to sue Jones for releasing messages from Abel’s phone to Lively’s attorneys.

Araya Doheny/Variety via Getty Images

Dec. 31, 2024: Baldoni, Wayfarer & Others Sue The New York TimesBaldoni, 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 E!, 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 E!. “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.”

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Dec. 31, 2024: Lively Files Lawsuit Against Baldoni & Wayfarer AssociatesThat same day, Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer, Heath, Sarowitz, production entity It Ends With Us Movie LLC, Nathan, Nathan’s company TAG and Abel in New York.According to the court documents obtained by E! News, she is suing the defendants for sexual harassment; retaliation; failure to investigate, prevent and/or remedy harassment; aiding and abetting harassment and retaliation; breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence infliction of emotional distress and false light invasion of privacy.The allegations in the lawsuit were first detailed in the CRD complaint Lively filed earlier that month.As for Lively’s response to the lawsuit Baldoni and his associates filed against The New York Times—which did not list her a defendant—her attorneys noted in a statement to E! that “nothing in this lawsuit changes anything about the claims” in her CRD and federal complaints.”This lawsuit is based on the obviously false premise that Ms. Lively’s administrative complaint against Wayfarer and others was a ruse based on a choice ‘not to file a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer,’ and that ‘litigation was never her ultimate goal,'” they continued. “As demonstrated by the federal complaint filed by Ms. Lively earlier today, that frame of reference for the Wayfarer lawsuit is false.”

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Jan. 2, 2025: Baldoni’s Lawyer Expresses Intent to Sue LivelyIn Baldoni and his associates’ lawsuit against The New York Times, the plaintiffs expressed that they “are not done.””There are other bad actors involved,” the court documents stated, “and make no mistake—this will not be the last lawsuit.”In a Jan. 2 interview with NBC News, Baldoni and Wayfarer’s attorney Freedman said they “absolutely” planned to sue Lively.

Noam Galai/Getty Images for Netflix / Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

Jan. 7, 2025: Baldoni’s Lawyer Calls Out Deadpool & WolverineThe headlines about Baldoni and Lively didn’t stop there. For instance, social media users speculated that her husband Reynolds trolled Baldoni in his movie Deadpool & Wolverine through the character Nicepool.Reynolds has not publicly commented on the rumors; however, Baldoni’s lawyer Freedman shared his reaction.”What I make of that is that if your wife is sexually harassed, you don’t make fun of Justin Baldoni,” Freedman said during an interview on The Megyn Kelly Show posted to YouTube Jan 7. “You don’t make fun of the situation. You take it very seriously. You file HR complaints. You raise the issue and you follow a legal process. What you don’t do is mock the person and turn it into a joke.”

Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Lively’s attorneys said there have been more “attacks” against her since her lawsuit.”Ms. Lively’s federal litigation before the Southern District of New York involves serious claims of sexual harassment and retaliation, backed by concrete facts,” her lawyers said in a Jan. 7 statement to E! News. “This is not a ‘feud’ arising from ‘creative differences’ or a ‘he said/she said’ situation. As alleged in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and as we will prove in litigation, Wayfarer and its associates engaged in unlawful, retaliatory astroturfing against Ms. Lively for simply trying to protect herself and others on a film set. And their response to the lawsuit has been to launch more attacks against Ms. Lively since her filing.””While we go through the legal process, we urge everyone to remember that sexual harassment and retaliation are illegal in every workplace and in every industry,” they added. “A classic tactic to distract from allegations of this type of misconduct is to ‘blame the victim’ by suggesting that they invited the conduct, brought it on themselves, misunderstood the intentions, or even lied. Another classic tactic is to reverse the victim and offender, and suggest that the offender is actually the victim.”Lively’s lawyers said “these concepts normalize and trivialize allegations of serious misconduct.” They also noted “media statements are not a defense” to her claims and that they’ll prosecute her claims in court.

John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images

In response, Baldoni’s lawyer Freedman told E!, “It is painfully ironic that Blake Lively is accusing Justin Baldoni of weaponizing the media when her own team orchestrated this vicious attack by sending the New York Times grossly edited documents prior to even filing the complaint.””We are releasing all of the evidence which will show a pattern of bullying and threats to take over the movie,” he added. “None of this will come as a surprise because consistent with her past behavior Blake Lively used other people to communicate those threats and bully her way to get whatever she wanted. We have all the receipts and more.”

Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin / GC Images / Robert Kamau / GC Images

Jan. 16, 2025: Baldoni, Wayfarer, Nathan & Abel File Lawsuit Against Lively, Reynolds & OthersBaldoni, Heath, Wayfarer, publicist Abel, crisis communication specialist Nathan and production entity It Ends With Us Movie LLC filed a lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds, her publicist Leslie Sloane and Sloane’s firm Vision PR in New York Jan. 16.According to the suit obtained by E! News, the plaintiffs accused all the defendants of civil extortion, defamation and false light invasion of privacy. As for Lively and Reynolds specifically, she was accused of breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and they were both accused of intentional interference with contractual relations and economic advantage as well as negligent interference with prospective economic advantage.In the suit, the plaintiffs denied Lively’s allegations of sexual harassment and a retaliatory smear campaign against her. They also accused her of seizing control of It Ends With Us and working with Reynolds, Sloane, Jones and others to “tar and feather Plaintiffs in the press” after she received backlash for her marketing of the film. (Lively said in her filings she promoted the movie in accordance with Sony’s marketing plan.)Plaintiffs alleged in the lawsuit the defendants worked with The New York Times “to put out a blockbuster news report as devastating as it was false.” The outlet stood by its report.In part of a statement to E!, Freedman said, “Blake Lively was either severely misled by her team or intentionally and knowingly misrepresented the truth.”

Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Jan. 16, 2025: Lively’s Lawyers Slam Baldoni’s “Desperate” LawsuitLively’s legal team called his lawsuit “another chapter in the abuser playbook,” saying in a statement to E! News, “This is an age-old story: A woman speaks up with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser attempts to turn the tables on the victim. This is what experts call DARVO. Deny. Attack. Reverse Victim Offender.”She further accused him of retaliating once she made allegations against him, saying Baldoni is trying to shift the narrative that Lively “seized creative control and alienated the cast from Mr. Baldoni.””The evidence will show,” it continued, “that the cast and others had their own negative experiences with Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer. The evidence will also show that Sony asked Ms. Lively to oversee Sony’s cut of the film, which they then selected for distribution and was a resounding success.”Her team went on to slam Baldoni’s reaction to her allegations of harassment.”Their response to sexual harassment allegations: she wanted it, it’s her fault. Their justification for why this happened to her: look what she was wearing,” her lawyers added. “In short, while the victim focuses on the abuse, the abuser focuses on the victim. The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, it does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail.”

Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Jan. 21, 2025: Behind-the-Scenes Footage of It Ends With Us ReleasedBaldoni’s legal counsel released behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of It Ends With Us, saying that the actor’s actions in the video “clearly refute Ms. Lively’s characterization” of him.”The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to one another,” Baldoni’s attorneys said in a statement. “Both actors are clearly behaving well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism.”However, Lively’s legal team believes the video “corroborates, to the letter, what Ms. Lively described” in her lawsuit and that “every moment of this was improvised by Mr. Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance.””The video shows Ms. Lively leaning away and repeatedly asking for the characters to just talk,” they told E! News in a statement. “Any woman who has been inappropriately touched in the workplace will recognize Ms. Lively’s discomfort.”

Araya Doheny/Variety via Getty Images and Gotham/GC Images

Jan. 22, 2025: Lively & Reynolds Seek Gag Order on Baldoni’s LawyerThe couple issued a letter to the judge overseeing their case, requesting that Freedman—the head of Baldoni’s counsel—be placed under a gag order amid their legal proceedings to “avoid improper conduct.”

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Jan. 27, 2025: Baldoni’s 2 AM Voice Memo to Lively RevealedA seven-minute voice memo Baldoni allegedly sent to Lively during It Ends With Us‘ production was published online. In it, the director appeared to reference the movie’s rooftop scene Lively had rewritten and how the changes were presented to him during an alleged meeting with Reynolds and their pal Taylor Swift.”We should all have friends like that aside from the fact that they’re two of the most creative people on the planet,” he told Lively. “The three of you guys together, it’s unbelievable.”In the recording, Baldoni also seemingly apologized to the actress for his lukewarm reception to her script, saying, “I f–ked up. One thing you should know about me is that I will admit and apologize when I fail.”

ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

Jan. 31, 2025: Baldoni Adds The New York Times to $400 Million LawsuitBaldoni’s team amended his Jan. 16 counterclaim to the U.S. District Court against Lively, Reynolds, Sloane and Sloane’s PR company Vision PR, Inc. to include The New York Times, according to documents obtained by E! News.In the amended document, Baldoni accused Lively and her team of spending months “colluding” and “feeding falsehoods to the New York Times.”The filing alleged that the newspaper “cherry picked” and altered communications stripped of necessary context and deliberately spliced to mislead.”

Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Vital Voices Global Partnership

Feb. 2, 2025: Baldoni’s Team Launches a WebsiteBaldoni created a website with information regarding his lawsuit against Lively that contained his amended complaint and a “timeline of relevant events.” Among the information in the latter document was alleged screenshots of texts exchanged between Lively, Reynolds and Baldoni.The website’s launch came one month after Freedman said his team planned to release “every single text message between the two.””We want the truth to be out there,” Baldoni’s attorney told NBC News in a Jan. 2 interview. “We want the documents to be out there. We want people to make their determination based on receipts.”

Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Sony Pictures

Feb. 18, 2025: Lively Files Her Own Amended ComplaintLively’s attorneys filed an amended complaint claiming that two other women who worked on It Ends With Us had come forward feeling uncomfortable by Baldoni’s behavior on set.”Ms. Lively was not alone in complaining about Mr. Baldoni,” the complaint, obtained by E! News, claimed. “The experiences of Ms. Lively and others were documented at the time they occurred starting in May of 2023. Importantly, and contrary to the entire narrative Defendants have invented, Mr. Baldoni acknowledged the complaints in writing at the time. He knew that women other than Ms. Lively also were uncomfortable and had complained about his behavior.”The amended complaint did not name the two witnesses, whom Lively said would testify, due to the “dangerous climate of threats, harassment, and intimidation fueled by the Defendants’ retaliation campaign.”In a statement to E!, Freedman accused the complaint of being filled with “unsubstantial hearsay” and alleged that the unidentified persons were “clearly no longer willing to come forward or publicly support her claims.”

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Feb. 20, 2025: Lively & Reynolds’ Publicist Asks to Be Dropped From LawsuitAfter Baldoni accused Sloane of propagating “malicious stories” that portrayed him as “a sexual predator” as well as orchestrating a “smear campaign” under Lively’s direction, Sloane filed a motional of dismissal from the lawsuit.In the documents obtained by E! News, Sloane’s attorney alleged that there was no “basis” for the accusations made against their client and that she was simply “dragged” into the lawsuit as a “smoke and mirrors exercise to distract from” Lively’s accusations.

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Feb. 28, 2025: Lively Hires CIA AlumLively brought onboard CIA’s former Deputy Chief of Staff Nick Shapiro to “advise on the legal communications strategy for the ongoing sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit occurring in the Southern District of New York,” a member from her litigation team Willkie Farr & Gallagher told Variety on Feb. 28.Shapiro—who worked for the CIA from 2013 to 2015 under the Obama administration—went on to become Visa’s vice president of global security and communications and then Airbnb’s global head of crisis management. After three years at the rental company, he founded his own consulting firm, 10th Avenue Consulting LLC.

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Feb. 28, 2025: The New York Times Files Motion to Exit the LawsuitThe New York Times filed a motion to dismiss itself from the $400 million lawsuit that also includes Lively, Baldoni, Sloane and Sloane’s company in documents obtained by E! News.The newspaper argued in the filing that Baldoni’s team was telling a “one-sided tale that has garnered plenty of headlines” but that “The Times does not belong in this dispute.”The New York Times‘ attorneys also noted that the $250 million lawsuit Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates had originally filed against The New York Times was dismissed after The New York Times was added to the $400 million lawsuit, per court documents obtained by Deadline.

Photo by John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images

March 4, 2025: Judge in Baldoni’s $400 Million Lawsuit Pauses DiscoveryFollowing The New York Times motion for dismissal, U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman granted the newspaper’s request for stay of discovery, according to documents obtained by E! News.The filing, which requested that the judge temporarily halt parties from having to exchange information or documents, was granted as the judge looked over The New York Times‘ Feb. 28 motion.Liman noted in the March 4 document that the The New York Times presented “substantial grounds” and “a strong showing that its motion to dismiss is likely to succeed on the merits.”The judge added that he didn’t believe Baldoni’s team would be “unfairly prejudiced by a stay while the Court decides the pending motion.”In a statement to E! News, a New York Times spokesperson addressed the update, writing, “We appreciate the court’s decision today, which recognizes the important First Amendment values at stake here. The court has stopped Mr. Baldoni from burdening The Times with discovery requests in a case that should never have been brought against.”

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May 2025: Baldoni’s Team Attempts to Subpeona Taylor Swift After Baldoni accused Lively of using her friendship with Swift as leverage for more creative control over It Ends With Us, with his legal team seeking to subpeona the singer, a rep for the singer fired back.”Taylor Swift never set foot on the set of this movie,” the spokesperson told E! News in a May 9 statement. “She was not involved in any casting or creative decisions, she did not score the film, she never saw an edit or made any notes on the film.””The connection Taylor had to this film was permitting the use of one song, ‘My Tears Ricochet,'” Swift’s representative continued. “Given that her involvement was licensing a song for the film, which 19 other artists also did, this document subpoena is designed to use Taylor Swift’s name to draw public interest by creating tabloid clickbait instead of focusing on the facts of the case.”Baldoni’s attorneys withdrew their request later that month, per Lively’s legal team.

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June 9, 2025: Baldoni’s Countersuit Against Lively & Reynolds DismissedA judgegranted a motion to dismiss the countersuit against Lively, Reynolds, their publicist Sloane, Sloane’s company Vision PR and The New York Times, saying that Baldoni and his legal team failed to prove their allegations of defamation or civil extortion. “Like so many others, I’ve felt the pain of a retaliatory lawsuit, including the manufactured shame that tries to break us,” Lively shared on Instagram Stories after the dismissal. “While the suit against me was defeated, so many don’t have the resources to fight back.”She added, “With love and gratitude for the many who stood by me. Many of you I know. Many of you I don’t. But I will never stop appreciating or advocating for you.”Meanwhile, Baldoni’s attorney told E! News in a statement that Lively’s “predictable declaration of victory is false.””This case is about false accusations of sexual harassment and retaliation and a nonexistent smear campaign,” the lawyer said, “which Ms. Lively’s own team conveniently describes as ‘untraceable’ because they cannot prove what never happened.”

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July 31, 2025: Lively DeposedLively sat down for a deposition at her attorneys’ New York office. Though media reports surfaced claiming that it was a “face-to-face showdown” between Lively and Baldoni, her attorneys later filed a motion slamming the so-called narrative that she “needed a large contingent of people with her to testify.”The truth, according to Lively’s counsel, was that Baldoni was in the room alongside other defendants named in her lawsuit as well as their respective legal representation.

Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images

Aug. 17, 2025: Isabela Ferrer Accuses Baldoni of BullyingIn a court filing obtained by E! News, Isabela Ferrer—who played a younger version of Lively’s Lily character in It Ends With Us—alleged Baldoni and his associates “tried to manipulate, threaten, control and otherwise act inappropriately towards” her after she was subpoenaed as part of the legal battle.According to Ferrer’s attorneys, the actress reached out to Wayfarer Studios to have her legal fees covered in accordance with her movie contract. However, they said Ferrer soon received a response from the company asking her to “relinquish control of her response to the Lively subpoena to Wayfarer” before being granted compensation.”Ms. Ferrer has already had to resist Baldoni’s inappropriate conduct in connection with her response to the Lively Subpoena,” they said in their filing, accusing Baldoni of trying to “bully” Ferrer by filing a motion against her.

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