Well, that’s one less blockbuster showdown for Hollywood’s legal drama files. Blake Lively’s team is celebrating after her It Ends With Us co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, decided not to refile his whopping $400 million countersuit against her and Ryan Reynolds.
It all kicked off late last year when Lively filed a lawsuit accusing Baldoni of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment, and orchestrating a smear campaign against her during the filming of It Ends With Us. The allegations were serious and included claims that things got so tense on set, an all-hands meeting was called with her husband, Ryan Reynolds, present. Lively’s legal team laid out a list of demands in response to Baldoni’s alleged behaviour, which the studio reportedly approved.
Baldoni fired back with a $400 million countersuit, accusing Lively, Reynolds, and their publicist of defamation and extortion, and even took a swing at The New York Times for its coverage of the whole mess. Both sides denied each other’s claims, and things quickly spiralled into a full-blown legal feud.
Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit, finding that Lively’s statements to the California Civil Rights Department were protected by legal privilege and couldn’t be the basis for a defamation claim. The judge also tossed out Baldoni’s $250 million claim against The New York Times, ruling its reporting was protected under fair-report privilege.
Baldoni was given the option to refile a much narrower claim related to breach of contract, but his lawyer, Bryan Freedman, confirmed this week that they’re not going down that path. Instead, they’ll be “pursuing additional legal options that are available to us”, per PEOPLE.
Lively’s camp didn’t waste time declaring the outcome a win. In a statement to JustJared.com, her rep said:
“The Court dismissed the frivolous $400 million Baldoni-Wayfarer lawsuit in its entirety. In the days that followed, Baldoni’s lawyer said the judge’s decision to dismiss their case was not a big deal as they promised to amend and refile it. As per usual, that was not true. The Court’s dismissal of Baldoni’s sham lawsuit was a total victory after all”.
Her lawyers echoed the sentiment in Us Weekly, calling the ruling a “complete vindication” for Lively, Reynolds, and everyone else named in the suit, and labelling Baldoni’s countersuit “a sham”.
Not to be outdone, Baldoni’s lawyer insisted the court’s decision “has no effect whatsoever on the truth that there was no harassment nor any smear campaign, and it does not in any way affect our vigorous defense against Ms. Lively’s claims”.
Translation: they’re not admitting defeat, and the legal wrangling isn’t over yet.
What’s next?
Lively’s original lawsuit is still very much alive, with a trial pencilled in for March 2026. Baldoni’s legal team is also trying to get access to Lively’s private conversations with a certain famous friend (yes, that’s Taylor Swift, whose texts became a point of contention in the discovery phase).
So, while Lively’s side is popping the champagne for now, the broader legal battle is far from finished. As for the $400 million countersuit? It’s officially off the table, and Lively’s team is calling it a “total victory after all”.
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