Blake Lively has been accused of attempting to extort Taylor Swift by threatening to release personal text messages, according to a court filing made by a lawyer representing actor Justin Baldoni.
The explosive claim, which has since been struck from the court record for being “inflammatory” and “irrelevant”, is the latest twist in a bitter legal battle between Lively and her former It Ends With Us co-star.
Lively launched a lawsuit against Baldoni in December, alleging he sexually harassed her on the set of the romantic drama, which he also directed. Baldoni has since counter-sued for defamation, prompting a protracted legal dispute now drawing in Swift and Lively’s husband, actor Ryan Reynolds.
According to Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman, Lively asked Swift to delete text messages they had exchanged. He claimed the information came from a source “who is highly likely to have reliable information”.
Freedman also alleged that Mike Gottlieb, representing Lively, contacted one of Swift’s lawyers and “demanded” a public statement of support for Lively. If the singer refused, Freedman claimed in a letter to the court, “private text messages of a personal nature in Ms Lively’s possession would be released”.
Lively’s legal team strongly denied the claims, describing them as “demonstrably false” and accusing Baldoni’s side of making “anonymously sourced, baseless, allegations recklessly levelled without any supporting evidence”.
They added that the accusations were a clear attempt to “launder scandalous and defamatory allegations” against the actress.
Judge Lewis J Liman struck the letter from the court record, writing: “The sole purpose of the letter is to ‘promote public scandal’ by advancing inflammatory accusations, on information and belief, against Lively and her counsel.
“It transparently invites a press uproar by suggesting that Lively and her counsel attempted to ‘extort’ a well-known celebrity.”
The development comes just days after Swift, who is close friends with Lively and namechecked three of her children in the song Betty, was subpoenaed by Baldoni’s lawyers in relation to the ongoing case.
Baldoni alleges he was pressured by Swift and Reynolds during a 2023 meeting in New York to accept changes to the film’s script. In a text message disclosed as part of Baldoni’s 179-page lawsuit, Lively reportedly referred to Swift and Reynolds as her “dragons” and likened herself to Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen.
“Like her, I happen to have a few dragons. For better or worse, but usually better. Because my dragons also protect those I fight for,” the message read.
Swift’s legal team has dismissed her involvement in the case, arguing the subpoena is a distraction tactic and that she played no creative role in the production of It Ends With Us.
“Taylor Swift never set foot on the set of this movie, 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, she did not even see It Ends With Us until weeks after its public release,” a spokesperson said.
“The connection Taylor had to this film was permitting the use of one song, My Tears Ricochet.
“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.”
Lively’s original complaint alleged that Baldoni subjected her to inappropriate behaviour on set, including watching her while she was topless in her trailer, attempting to insert gratuitous sex scenes, and “improvising” kisses during filming.
She also claimed Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer, hired PR experts known for destroying celebrity reputations through coordinated online attacks. According to court documents, one publicist is said to have stated: “[Baldoni] wants her to feel like she can be buried.”
Freedman has denied the allegations on Baldoni’s behalf, calling them “false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media”.
