In a new lawsuit filed on January 16, Justin Baldoni is accusing his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively of defamation and extortion, claiming that Lively’s portrayal of events during their time filming the 2024 summer release is inaccurate. According to Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit, he contends that it was Lively, not him, who made fun of his appearance and suggested he get plastic surgery.
Baldoni, who is known for his role in Jane the Virgin, claims that during a scene in which the two were working together, Lively broke character multiple times and began speaking as herself instead of her character, Lily. This, Baldoni argues, was confusing for him and disrupted the flow of the scene.
The lawsuit details an incident in which Lively apologized for the smell of her spray tan and body makeup, to which Baldoni responded that it smelled fine. As the scene continued, Lively allegedly joked about Baldoni’s nose, prompting him to laugh along and even joke back. However, Baldoni claims that Lively then took things further by suggesting he should get plastic surgery, which he found hurtful.
Baldoni asserts that he has been open about his insecurities, particularly about his appearance, having discussed his struggles with body dysmorphia on his Man Enough podcast. The lawsuit also mentions that Lively’s comments about his nose were captured on camera.
In addition to Lively, Baldoni’s lawsuit also targets Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, and her publicist, Leslie Sloane. Baldoni claims that Lively used her close relationship with singer Taylor Swift to exert control over the production of It Ends With Us and accused her of waging a campaign to ruin his reputation.
This new legal filing comes after Lively filed her own lawsuit in December, alleging inappropriate behavior on Baldoni’s part, which led to an all-hands meeting on set involving Reynolds. Lively claimed that Baldoni showed her inappropriate videos and made uncomfortable remarks about his past sexual experiences. Baldoni denied these allegations and even filed a separate suit against The New York Times, accusing the publication of selectively editing communications between him and Lively to misrepresent their interactions.