actor Blake Lively’s legal battle against It End’s With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni has suffered a significant setback. A judge has dismissed most of her claims, including allegations of sexual harassment and defamation, in a significant development in the ongoing dispute.
Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively’s claims
In a ruling released Thursday, Judge Lewis Lyman dismissed 10 of 13 claims in Blake Lively’s lawsuit, including harassment, defamation and conspiracy claims.
However, he allowed three claims to proceed at trial, including claims for breach of contract, retaliation and aiding and abetting retaliation. Now he will go for civil trial in New York on May 18.
The legal battle began in 2024 when Blake sued Justin, accusing him of harassment and a defamation campaign on the set of her hit movie. He denied it and countered. Blake accused the director and co-star Justin of sexually harassing her on the set of the film by making comments about her looks and weight.
On Thursday, Lyman ruled that Blake could not bring a sexual harassment claim under federal law because she was an independent contractor. They also ruled that she could not file a harassment claim under California law because the filming took place in New Jersey.
They also alleged that Justin had hired an army of publicists to retaliate against him by promoting and spreading negative stories online. The judge ruled that the two retaliation claims deserved to go to a jury.
Alexandria Shapiro and Jonathan Bach, attorneys representing Justin, Wayfarer Studios and their publicists, said, “We are very pleased that the court dismissed all of the sexual harassment claims and every claim brought against the individual defendants.”
“These were very serious allegations, and we are grateful to the court for its careful review of the facts, the law, and the overwhelming evidence provided. What remains is a significantly compressed case, and we look forward to presenting our defense to the remaining claims in court.”
according to DiversitySigrid McCauley, a member of Blake’s legal team, noted that a jury would get the final verdict on whether Blake was the victim of a retaliatory smear campaign.
Sigrid said, “This case has always been and will be focused on the devastating retaliation and extraordinary steps taken by the defendants to destroy Blake Lively’s reputation because she stood up to her safety on set, and that is what the case is going to trial for.”
More information about the controversy
The matter stems from a conversation between Justin and Blake on set It ends with us. In the film, Blake plays the lead character Lily Bloom, a young woman who grew up witnessing domestic abuse and finds herself in the same situation years later.
Blake’s legal team has accused Justin and his film studio, Wayfarer, of planning to damage his reputation, including manipulating social media and using friendly journalists to sow certain narratives. He shared details of the allegations in a New York Times article published before his trial.
Meanwhile, Justin and his lawyers argued that Blake used exaggerated allegations of misconduct to gain control of the film and then cast Justin as the villain. The team also argued that Blake’s allegations regarding behavior on set were nothing more than “minor complaints”.
Justin and Blake attended a mediation session with a magistrate judge in February, but no resolution was reached.