Mr Viral
In a bombshell legal filing, It Ends With Us star Blake Lively is claiming that its co-star/director Justin Baldoni and a producer of the film hired a public relations team to turn the tide of public opinion against her. According to Lively, the alleged smear campaign was a retaliatory measure after Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath engaged in “repeated sexual harassment and other disturbing behavior,” the filing claims, during the production of the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s 2016 novel, which was famously plagued by rumors of trouble on set.
The 80-page administrative complaint, filed in California Civil Court on Friday and obtained by Vanity Fair, follows a filing made the same day by Lively’s legal team with California’s Civil Rights Department. Instead of requesting that state investigators look into the allegations, Lively requested an immediate right to sue. That right was granted, sources familiar with the case tell Vanity Fair.
According to the complaint, when filming for It Ends With Us was set to resume following a disruption prompted by the 2023 Hollywood strikes, attorneys for Blake Lively sent a letter to the film’s production company, Wayfarer Studios, asking for an end to what, in the complaint, was described as a “hostile work environment.” In a subsequent “all-hands” meeting this January, according to the complaint, Lively told a group that included Baldoni, some of the film’s producers, and studio execs, as well as Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, that Baldoni had improvised additional kissing in scenes. She asked for an end to “adding of sex scenes, oral sex or on camera climaxing,” the complaint alleges, and both sides agreed to a set of boundaries before filming resumed.
But though the list of stipulations included a prohibition on retaliation against Lively for raising those complaints, the complaint alleges that Baldoni, Heath, and others within Wayfarer hired public relations strategists to create a campaign to erode public trust in Lively, a preemptive move in case Lively’s on-set allegations were leaked to the public.
As first reported by The New York Times, text messages and emails Lively’s team obtained via subpoena include messages between public relations, crisis communications, and media management experts that appear to detail a coordinated set of efforts to plant negative stories about Lively in the media and boost social media posts critical of the star. Following the implementation of the strategy, according to the complaint, one publicist wrote to another: “And socials are really really ramping up…. In his favour, she must be furious. It’s actually sad because it just shows you have people really want to hate on women.”
Those who followed the social media swirl around the domestic abuse drama are likely aware of the truth of that observation. Though the film was a box office success, it was also the source of endless fan speculation after Baldoni appeared to be absent from most promotions involving the cast, including a video the cast made with Vanity Fair.
At one point, the furor—much of which appeared to vilify Lively—rose to the point that Lively’s sister was compelled to defend her online. It is unclear, however, if any of the social media narrative critical of Lively was a result of the alleged campaign.
Lively’s attorneys declined additional comment on the filing, referring us to the complaint. In a written statement shared with media, 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.”
When contacted for comment, Bryan Freedman, the attorney for Justin Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and all its representatives denied Lively’s allegations via written statement. “These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious,” he wrote. “Wayfarer Studios made the decision to proactively hire a crisis manager prior to the marketing campaign of the film … due to the multiple demands and threats made by Ms. Lively during production.” According to Freedman, “There were no proactive measures taken with media or otherwise; just internal scenario planning.”
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