Blake Lively's Lawyers React to Video Released by Justin Baldoni's Team, Vow to Bring Case to Court
Blake Lively‘s legal team has released a lengthy response to the new video that was leaked to the media by Justin Baldoni‘s lawyers.
Justin‘s team released a nearly 10-minute video featuring raw footage from the set of It Ends With Us in an attempt to show that he didn’t harass her while filming a romantic scene.
His team said in a statement, shown at the beginning of the video, “Ms. Lively’s complaint alleges that during a scene Mr. Baldoni and Ms. Lively were filming for a slow dance montage, Mr. Baldoni was behaving inappropriately. The following videos captured on May 23, 2023, clearly refute Ms. Lively’s characterization of his behavior. The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to one another. Both actors are clearly behaving well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism. These are all three takes filmed of the sequence.”
The scene features Blake and Justin‘s characters dancing in a bar and there is no dialogue involved. Among the comments made during the filming were jokes about Justin‘s nose, which were mentioned in his lawsuit against her.
Blake‘s team refutes the comments made by Justin‘s legal team and says the video is actually “damning” to their case.
Head inside to read the statement from Blake Lively’s team…
Read the full statement below…
- “Justin Baldoni and his lawyer may hope that this latest stunt will get ahead of the damaging evidence against him, but the video itself is damning. Every frame of the released footage corroborates, to the letter, what Ms. Lively described in Paragraph 48 of her Complaint. The video shows Mr. Baldoni repeatedly leaning in toward Ms. Lively, attempting to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smells, and talking with her out of character. Every moment of this was improvised by Mr. Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance, and no intimacy coordinator present. Mr. Baldoni was not only Ms. Lively’s co-star, but the director, the head of studio and Ms. Lively’s boss.
The video shows Ms. Lively leaning away and repeatedly asking for the characters to just talk. Any woman who has been inappropriately touched in the workplace will recognize Ms. Lively’s discomfort. They will recognize her attempts at levity to try to deflect the unwanted touching. No woman should have to take defensive measures to avoid being touched by their employer without their consent.
This matter is in active litigation in federal court. Releasing this video to the media, rather than presenting it as evidence in court, is another example of an unethical attempt to manipulate the public. It is also a continuation of their harassment and retaliatory campaign. While they are focused on misleading media narratives, we are focused on the legal process. We are continuing our efforts to require Mr. Baldoni and his associates to answer in court, under oath, rather than through manufactured media stunts.”
MORE COVERAGE:
- 20 Key Allegations From Justin Baldoni’s Lawsuit Against Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds, Including Debunking Claims & 2 Theories About Blake’s Behavior
- Justin Baldoni & Blake Lively’s Alleged Text Messages: Every Screen Grab Released From New Lawsuit (Including That Apparent Taylor Swift Mention)
- Here’s What Justin Baldoni Alleges Ryan Reynolds Said to Him in NYC Penthouse Meeting After Asking About Blake Lively’s Weight
- Read Justin Baldoni’s 2019 Email Exchanges with ‘It Ends with Us’ Author Colleen Hoover
- Justin Baldoni Addresses ‘It Ends with Us’ Cast Unfollowing Him, Shares Alleged Isabela Ferrer Text Message Exchange
- Justin Baldoni Shares His ‘Basement’ Photos from ‘It Ends With Us’ Premiere in Lawsuit Against Blake Lively
- Justin Baldoni’s Team Developed Website for Fans to Read Messages From Blake Lively Lawsuit (Report)