Justin Baldoni is modifying his legal action against Blake Lively.
On Saturday, February 1, the 41-year-old actor and director of It Ends with Us submitted an amendment to his lawsuit, asserting that Lively had been collaborating with The New York Times for several months prior to the article’s publication in December 2024.
Recent documents obtained by TMZ reveal that Baldoni contends his character was subjected to “malicious and reckless” defamation as early as October 31, 2024. This claim is purportedly supported by metadata found within the article, where Lively accused him of sexual harassment.
According to his legal team, an examination of the HTML source code for the article suggested the presence of a “message-embed-generator” linked to the date of October 31, 2024. They argue that certain elements of the article weaken the legal protections that Lively, the Times, and associated parties might have relied upon to shield themselves from liability.
In addition to his $400 million lawsuit against Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds, Baldoni is also pursuing a $250 million claim against The New York Times, alleging that the publication selectively edited text messages to substantiate Lively’s accusations.
Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, explained, “Amending our lawsuit was a natural progression given the substantial new evidence we’ve uncovered. This fresh information substantiates our belief that Lively and her team conspired for months to damage reputations through a maze of falsehoods.”
The revised lawsuit includes a detailed timeline exceeding 150 pages, tracing Lively’s purported efforts to undermine Baldoni, extending back to January 1, 2019, when Baldoni first reached out to Colleen Hoover regarding It Ends with Us.
MORE COVERAGE:
Vocabulary List:
- Modification /ˌmɒdɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/ (noun): The act of making changes or alterations to something.
- Allegation /ˌælɪˈɡeɪʃən/ (noun): A claim or assertion that someone has done something illegal or wrong typically one that is made without proof.
- Defamation /ˌdɛf.əˈmeɪ.ʃən/ (noun): The action of damaging the good reputation of someone; slander or libel.
- Collaboration /kəˌlæbəˈreɪʃən/ (noun): The action of working with someone to produce or create something.
- Substantiate /səbˈstænʃiˌeɪt/ (verb): To provide evidence to support or prove the truth of something.
- Liability /ˌlaɪəˈbɪləti/ (noun): The state of being responsible for something especially by law.
