Justin Baldoni is suing The New York Times for $250 million following a bombshell article reporting Blake Lively’s legal complaint against the actor and director. On Tuesday, Baldoni filed a defamation lawsuit in response to the magazine’s Dec. 21 article highlighting Lively’s accusations against Baldoni. The lawsuit alleges that Lively sexually harassed Baldoni on the set of her film It Ends With Us and orchestrated a retaliatory smear campaign in response to her accusations. .
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The lawsuit denounces both Lively’s claims and the newspaper’s reporting, and names Baldoni as one of 10 plaintiffs, along with publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel. . The suit alleges that the Times failed to show reasonable care in reporting Lively’s allegations. “Despite claiming to have ‘considered these along with other documents,’ the Times relied almost entirely on Lively’s unverified and self-serving statements, contradicting her claims and denying her “He held it up almost verbatim, ignoring the wealth of evidence that exposed his true motives,” the complaint states.
The complaint also alleges that a Times article written by Megan Toohey, Mike McIntyre, and Julie Tate contained a defamatory headline, and that the paper did not review all text communications provided by Lively. It claims to have referred only to “altered” messages.
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According to The Hollywood Reporter, Mr. Baldoni’s lawyer, Brian Friedman, said in a statement that the Times was “intimidated by the greed and whims of two powerful ‘untouchable’ Hollywood elites.” In response to Baldoni’s lawsuit, a representative for the Times said: “Our story was reported with the utmost care and responsibility. It is based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including: . ” The statement added that the Times plans to “vigorously defend the lawsuit.”
Baldoni’s complaint also alleges that Lively’s initial failure to file a formal lawsuit against Baldoni was because “her administrative complaints contained blatant charges that would warrant termination, if not sanctions. “Falsehoods and gross misrepresentations are rampant. Second, pursuing formal legal action would derail her truth.” The aim is an organized campaign to restore her public image. Furthermore, despite Lively’s accusation that Baldoni and his team launched a smear campaign, it was actually her who created a “strategic and manipulative” narrative about Baldoni in the press. It is also claimed that
Later on the same day the defamation lawsuit was filed, Ms. Lively formally filed suit in federal court in New York. The allegations mirror those of her previous legal claims. When asked for comment, Lively’s representative provided InStyle with the following statement from Lively’s attorney: “Nothing in (Baldoni’s) lawsuit changes anything about Ms. Lively’s California Civil Rights Department complaint or the allegations made in her federal complaint (filed in December).” 31) The lawsuit is based on the patently false premise that Ms. Lively’s administrative complaint against Wayfarer and others was a ruse. …While we do not intend to litigate this issue in the press, we encourage you to read Ms. Lively’s complaint in its entirety. We look forward to addressing all of Wayfarer’s claims in court. ”
Regarding Lively’s own federal lawsuit, Lively’s attorney told InStyle, “Unfortunately, Ms. Lively’s decision to speak out has resulted in further retaliation and attacks, as alleged in Ms. Lively’s federal complaint. As stated, Wayfarer and its associates are violating federal and California law.” By retaliating against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns, the defendant will now answer for his actions in federal court. ”
“I hope that my legal action will help end the evil retaliatory tactics that harm those who speak out about wrongdoing, and help protect those who may be targeted.” Lively said in a statement shared with InStyle on Dec. 21.
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Baldoni’s complaint also mentions Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, who was interviewed by producers Jamie Heath, Todd Black, and Sony representative Alex during a meeting at Baldoni and Lively’s townhouse. Saks and Film First also claim to have participated. ADs were “blindsided” by an “unexpected and troubling list of complaints”. The lawsuit further states that “Reynolds verbally abused Baldoni and later accused Baldoni of what he described as a ‘traumatic’ encounter and that he had ‘never had anyone say anything like that to me in my life.’ (In Lively’s previous legal complaint, Baldoni later described the meeting as a “traumatic” encounter.) The meeting at Ms. Reynolds’ home was described as a “hostile incident that nearly derailed production.” (Convened to address working conditions). Representatives for Reynolds did not immediately respond to InStyle’s request for comment.
In response to Lively’s complaints, Baldoni’s talent agency, William Morris Endeavor (also known as WME), dropped the actor and director. Baldoni’s new complaint alleges that Reynolds pressured WME to take this action. According to Variety, an agency representative denies his claims.
