Yahoo Lifestyle A timeline of the Blake Lively v Justin Baldoni sexual harassment case
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s difficult relationship has been publicly speculated on since last summer, when the pair notably embarked on very different promotional campaigns for their film, It Ends With Us – which stars both actors, while being produced by Lively and directed by Baldoni.
The film received mixed reviews, with some praising its portrayal of domestic abuse and others critiquing it for seemingly ‘glamourising’ a devastating issue (arguments also levelled at the Colleen Hoover novel from which it is adapted). Ultimately though, the movie itself has been overshadowed by the fallout between Lively and Baldoni, which since December 2024 has descended into both parties taking legal action against one another and Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, being pulled into the discourse.
Most recently (as of 16 January 2024), Baldoni and the film’s production company Wayfarer Studios have launched a countersuit against Lively and Reynolds for defamation and extortion, demanding a minimum of $400m (£326m) for damages, citing lost future income in the case.
The lawsuit came after Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment on set, and of showing her unwanted pornographic images, requesting more sexual scenes than she had agreed to when signing on to the project and for repeatedly mentioning her deceased father.
Both Lively and Baldoni allege that the other has launched a deliberate and calculated smear campaign against them, with Lively’s team issuing a statement accusing Baldoni of deploying a legal tactic known to be used by abusers called DARVO (Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender].
Here’s a timeline of the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni feud:
August 2024: Press tour controversy begins
To coincide with It Ends With Us airing, Lively and Baldoni both embark on a high profile promotional press tour – independently of one another. Due to a lack of joint appearances, rumours begin to swirl that the pair have fallen out and negativity is largely directed towards Lively, who is accused of taking too ‘light’ an approach when promoting a movie centred on domestic violence. Lively is also criticised for discussing her haircare line and other businesses during interviews off the back of It Ends With Us.
6 August 2024: Lively is criticised for her promo efforts
In one clip published on the official It Ends With Us TikTok account, the former Gossip Girl star breezily says, “Grab your friends, wear your florals and head out to see it” which some viewed as glib and a poor attempt to recreate the hype around 2023’s Barbie movie, that saw audiences dress in pink for screenings.
Comparatively, Baldoni is praised for speaking about abuse in interviews and for being a male feminist ally. “The book helped thousands and thousands and thousands of women leave these relationships," he said during one interview. "I know far too many women who have been sexually assaulted or abused. That number is way too high, and there's a reason that they care, and I just want them to know I care too."
Later on, Lively would claim that she was deliberately instructed by the film’s marketing team to take a more upbeat stance when promoting the film, pushing it as ‘hopeful’ rather than a sad story.
On the same day, 6 August, Lively and Baldoni both attend the film’s premiere in New York but aren’t pictured together at all.
8 August 2024: TikTok tries to decode the drama… making it a bigger drama
One viral video from TikToker Arianna Lillie speculated that Ryan Reynolds’ (Lively’s husband) involvement in the film could be a reason for the apparent drama between Baldoni and Lively, saying, “I’m not saying that Blake Lively has specifically been problematic, but I knew something was up the second I heard that Ryan Reynolds was coming in and rewriting scenes of a movie that Justin Baldoni is not only starring in, but also directing, and is the whole reason this project is happening.”
She continued, "Justin Baldoni bought the rights to the book and approached Blake Lively about being in the movie, and yet I feel like Ryan Reynolds has done more PR for this movie than Justin himself. Like this whole interview that he did with Brandon, who played Atlas in the movie…
"And this whole [trying to make Deadpool and It Ends With Us] the next Barbenheimer. It seems like Justin is getting pushed out of this whole situation, which is honestly kind of sad because he was most excited about this whole thing from the start.”
9 August 2024: It Ends With Us airs in the UK
The film airs to mixed reviews with critics claiming it glamourises toxic and abusive relationships, but is praised by some domestic abuse charities for giving a realistic portrayal of violence against women and girls and those who perpetrate it. It clearly shows abuse can come from men who might seem charming, successful and charismatic.
In terms of box office success, It Ends With Us grosses $351 million worldwide (£287m) vs a $25 million (around £20m) budget.
In an interview with Cosmopolitan UK, Baldoni repeatedly praised Lively, saying: “Blake had amazing ideas [on set], and was very hands on with the choreography of it. Honestly, there were many instances on set where I let the women figure it out, and I took a step back, and jumped in more as an actor. We had a three hour meeting, and by the end of it, I knew she was Lily."
However, animosity towards Lively continued to ramp up online.
10 August 2024: An old interview of Blake Lively resurfaces
Journalist Kjersti Flaa posts a video of a 2017 interview she did with Lively featuring an awkward moment, where the journalist congratulates a pregnant Lively on her ‘little bump’ and she replies ‘congrats on your little bump!’ (when the journalist was not pregnant).
Packing a punch, Flaa titled her YouTube upload of the interview ‘The Blake Lively interview that made me want to quit my job’ and as clips of the awkward interview began to go viral, the Lively pile-on increased.
“Please do not believe the rumor that people are spreading saying I was told not to bring up Blake's pregnancy during this interview. That is NOT true,” Flaa wrote in her YouTube caption. “I was never told such a thing by anyone. That being said, I would love to get the source of this information so I can set the record straight.”
Other old clips of Lively apparently being ‘rude’ or ‘deliberately awkward’ during interviews are posted on social media, seemingly building a takedown of her character.
14 August 2024: Reports emerge of Baldoni ‘fat-shaming’ Lively
Tabloid outlet TMZ reports that a self-conscious and postpartum Lively felt ‘fat-shamed’ while filming with Baldoni, who allegedly asked a personal trainer how much Lively weighed, citing concerns about him being unable to lift her (due to a back injury) during a scene.
In addition to this, reports claim Baldoni ‘lingered’ too long during a kissing scene with Lively, making her uncomfortable.
At this stage, neither Lively or Baldoni comment publicly on the stories. It is also noted in the press that many of the film’s other cast members have unfollowed Baldoni on social media.
21 December 2024: Lively accuses Baldoni of sexual harassment in a lawsuit
A few days before Christmas, Lively launches a sexual harassment suit against Baldoni, alleging that he created a hostile environment on set and following filming embarked on a calculated campaign to destroy her reputation. Lively also claims Baldoni's behaviour caused her "severe emotional distress". Baldoni strongly denied the allegations.
The lawsuit also claims a crisis meeting was held between Lively, Baldoni and Reynolds during filming, in which Lively made plain how uncomfortable Baldoni’s behaviour made her ahead of time, something which she now feels could be the cause of the negativity against her online.
Part of the lawsuit says that the meeting saw Lively request that Baldoni “[stop] showing nude videos or images of women to Blake, no more mention of Baldoni's alleged previous 'pornography addiction,' no more discussions about sexual conquests in front of Blake and others, no further mentions of cast and crew's genitalia, no more inquiries about Blake's weight, and no further mention of Blake's dead father." Additionally, it suggests that Lively asked for there to be "no more adding of sex scenes, oral sex or on camera climaxing by BL outside the scope of the script BL approved when signing onto the project."
In response, Baldoni’s legal counsel labelled the suit "false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt” and an attempt from Lively to fix her faltering reputation. A statement added that Lively had displayed diva-ish tendencies on set, including "threatening to not show up" and "threatening to not promote the film," leading to its "demise during release."
23 December 2024: Baldoni is reportedly dropped by management after texts are circulated
It is reported that WME, who also represent Lively and Reynolds, drop Baldoni as a client after Lively launches her legal complaint and texts allegedly from Baldoni to a PR agency are circulated.
The texts appear to show Baldoni and Jennifer Abel, of PR firm RWA Communications and Melissa Nathan, of The Agency Group PR, orchestrating a "multi-tiered" plan against Lively.
It’s reported that when a publicist wrote to crisis management expert, Melissa Nathan "He wants to feel like she can be buried”, Nathan replied, "You know we can bury anyone."
In response, Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, told press, “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."
Via a statement shared with Cosmopolitan UK, Lively said "I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted."
31 December 2024: Baldoni sues the New York Times for defamation
A report in the New York Times says Baldoni and his team are attempting to sue the publication for defamation after it published an article on Lively claiming she is the victim of a smear campaign. The lawsuit accuses the newspaper of uncritically accepting a “self-serving narrative” from Lively and for misrepresenting Baldoni.
In response, legal representatives for the NYT said: “We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit. 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.”
17 January 2025: Baldoni launches a counter lawsuit against Lively and Reynolds
Within a new filing, Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios’ legal team say, “This is a case about two of the most powerful stars in the world [Lively and Reynolds] deploying their enormous power to steal an entire film right out of the hands of its director and production studio. Then, when Lively and Reynolds’ efforts failed to win them the acclaim they believed they so richly deserved, they turned their fury on their chosen scapegoat.”
In response, Lively’s team hit back with: “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.”
Some suggest that the tactics Baldoni is accused of deploying are reminiscent of those seen during actor Johnny Depp’s highly-publicised defamation trial against his ex-wife, Amber Heard, who accused him of domestic and sexual violence, and who was brutally trolled by thousands around the world after speaking out (with some comments coming via bots). The Depp vs Heard trial saw both parties awarded damages, and an earlier UK-based trial saw Depp lose his libel case against The Sun newspaper which referred to him as a “wife beater”.
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