It Ends with Us controversy

Actress Blake Lively (left; pictured in 2011) and director Justin Baldoni (pictured in 2017)

It Ends with Us is a 2024 American romantic drama film directed by Justin Baldoni from a screenplay by Christy Hall, based on the 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover of the same name.

The production became mired in controversy due to disputes between Lively and Baldoni, with the former drawing criticism for not addressing the film's themes of domestic violence and emotional abuse during its promotional tour and the latter being accused of sexual harassment on set.

Between December 20, 2024, and January 31, 2025, a number of lawsuits were filed concerning various issues on the set of the film It Ends with Us, which premiered in August 2024, and was a box-office success, grossing $351 million worldwide against a $25 million budget.

On December 20, 2024, Blake Lively filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, alleging Justin Baldoni created a hostile work environment through inappropriate sexual comments and boundary violations. The complaint coincided with a New York Times article alleging that Baldoni hired a PR team to ruin Lively's public image in retaliation for the complaints. On December 31, 2024, Lively filed a federal suit against Baldoni for the same issues from her complaint to the Civil Rights Department. Lively additionally sued two of Baldoni's public relations representatives, Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, for violat[ing] federal and California state law by retaliating against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns.

On December 26, 2024, Baldoni filed a libel lawsuit for $250 million against The New York Times. On January 16, 2025, he also filed a $400 million civil suit against lead actress Blake Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist Leslie Sloan for extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy. Baldoni's filings allege that Lively used the threats of false sexual harassment complaints and walking away from production to take creative control over the movie production, successfully shutting him out, firing his editors, and banning him from the premiere of the film. Baldoni claimed that he did not participate in a smear campaign, and that the negative public image that Lively garnered during promotion of the film was organic.

Conflict during promotion of film

During the promotion of the film It Ends with Us many people had noticed that Colleen Hoover and Lively, along with many members of the cast, had unfollowed Baldoni on Instagram. At the same time, Baldoni was noticeably absent from the film's promotion and questions about the director were often deflected.

This conflict during promotion underscored rumors of fights over creative control of the movie during production.

During this time, the discussion of Lively became increasingly negative on social media. The actress was criticized for promoting her alcohol brand at the same time as a movie about domestic violence, the latter of which is often exacerbated by alcohol. She was further criticized for promoting the film in a cheery manner by suggesting that moviegoers should grab your friends and wear your florals on the way to the movie theater. The actress also promoted her hair care line while doing press for the movie. Because It Ends With Us is a film focused on domestic violence, this was seen as tone deaf.

Most prominently, a video resurfaced from Norwegian journalist Kjersti Flaa, who shared a clip from an interview she conducted with Lively in 2016. At the time, Lively had publicly announced her pregnancy and the clip opens with Flaa congratulating Lively on her "little bump" with Lively responding congrats on your little bump! to Flaa, who was not pregnant at the time and later revealed that she was struggling with infertility. Lively continued to ignore Flaa during the interview, choosing instead to engage with her co-star, Parker Posey.

Lively's complaint and subsequent lawsuit allege that the shift in online opinion occurred due to a smear campaign run by Baldoni's public relations firm.

Initial Civil Rights Department claim by Blake Lively against Justin Baldoni

During the 2024 production of the American romantic drama film It Ends with Us, lead actress Blake Lively alleged she had experienced sexual harassment from the film's director and co-star, Justin Baldoni. On December 20, 2024, Lively filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, alleging Baldoni created a hostile work environment through inappropriate sexual comments and boundary violations, such as improvising unwanted kissing during filming. The New York Times reported that Baldoni hired a PR crisis management team to "bury" Lively after she confronted him about the alleged harassment. Documents obtained by Lively via court-issued subpoena allegedly showed a coordinated effort on Baldoni's behalf to discredit her across both traditional and social media.

Prior to the recommencement of filming after the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, Wayfarer Studios had agreed to implement safeguards including providing a full-time intimacy coordinator and bringing in an outside producer. Lively and Reynolds had a meeting to address their list of demands to Wayfarer Studios, which were reported to include not showing nude videos or images of women to Lively; no more mentions of Baldoni's alleged previous 'pornography addiction'; no more discussions about sexual experiences in front of Lively and others; no further mentions of cast and crew's genitalia; and no more inquiries about Lively's weight.

According to documents reviewed by The New York Times, after Lively raised concerns, Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath hired crisis management experts who allegedly coordinated efforts to "destroy" Lively's reputation through social media campaigns and strategic media placement. Baldoni and his lawyer, Bryan Freedman, who deny the accusations, produced a statement describing Lively's claims as completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious. Baldoni's publicist acknowledged his PR team had sophomorically reveled in the Lively coverage but insisted that although we were prepared, we didn't have to do anything over the top to protect our client.

Initial response and fallout

On December 21, 2024, the talent agency WME dropped Baldoni as a client. Colleen Hoover, the author of the novel on which the film is based, released a personal statement supporting Lively. The actors' union SAG-AFTRA also stood by Lively, releasing a statement that read in part, We applaud [her] courage in speaking out on issues of retaliation and harassment and for her request to have an intimacy coordinator for all scenes with nudity or sexual content. This is an important step that helps ensure a safe set.

Baldoni, who was to announced to receive the Voices of Solidarity Award, had his award officially rescinded. Vital Voices, the sponsor of the award, stated their reasoning was based on reported communications between Baldoni and his publicists, published by The New York Times. As stated by Vital Voices, the statements were alone, contrary to the values of Vital Voices and the spirit of the Award.

Baldoni's Man Enough co-host Liz Plank resigned from their podcast. Sony Pictures released a statement standing by Lively, adding, [W]e strongly condemn any reputational attacks on her. Any such attacks have no place in our business or in a civil society.

On December 24, Stephanie Jones, Baldoni's former publicist, filed a lawsuit in New York City alleging both breach of contract and defamation against Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and her former employees. Jones claimed she was forced out of representing Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios amid concerns about Lively going public with misconduct accusations. The lawsuit alleges that Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan, former employees of Jones' PR firm, conspired for months to undermine Jones and her PR firm, Jonesworks, by stealing clients and prospects while blaming her for their smear campaign. It cites text messages and emails retrieved from Abel's company-issued phone, obtained after her firing, which coincided with the firm's separation from Baldoni and Wayfarer.

In response to Lively's legal filing, Freedman maintained that the claims were "completely false" and also suggested the text messages shared by Jones with The New York Times were "cherry-picked" to make his clients look unfavorable. According to Freedman, the text messages have been presented out of context by Jones and Lively in a way that alters their meaning; he also stated that he has never seen this level of unethical behavior intentionally fueled through media manipulation.

Justin Baldoni's lawsuit against the New York Times

In response, Baldoni filed a libel lawsuit for $250 million against The New York Times accusing them of pushing an unverified and self-serving narrative using cherry-picked and altered communications stripped of necessary context, and allegedly ignoring evidence disputing Lively's claims. Baldoni's lawyer stated, In this vicious smear campaign fully orchestrated by Lively and her team, the New York Times cowered to the wants and whims of two powerful 'untouchable' Hollywood elites, disregarding journalistic practices and ethics once befitting of the revered publication by using doctored and manipulated texts and intentionally omitting texts which dispute their chosen PR narrative.

Baldoni's lawsuit states, Lively's cynical abuse of sexual harassment allegations to assert unilateral control over every aspect of the production was both strategic and manipulative... Simultaneously, her public image suffered as a result of a series of high-profile blunders, which she tried to deflect by blaming Plaintiffs for the public's prying interest into the foibles of an A-list celebrity. This is nothing but an excuse. Fame is a double-edged sword, but Lively's tactics here are unconscionable.

The New York Times has defended itself, saying The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead. Our story was meticulously and responsibly reported. It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including the text messages and emails that we quote accurately and at length in the article.

Blake Lively's lawsuit against Justin Baldoni

After Baldoni filed suit against The New York Times, on December 31, 2024, Lively filed a federal suit against Baldoni for the same issues from her complaint to the Civil Rights Department (which had not yet been an official lawsuit, but merely a complaint to a department).

Journalist Matt Schimkowitz argues, ironically, Baldoni's lawsuit all but challenged Lively to do this, arguing that her filing a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department last week was to avoid scrutiny of a lawsuit. Unfortunately for Baldoni, this latest filing makes much of Baldoni's defenses murkier.

Lively's representatives directly addressed this being a response to Baldoni's lawsuit, saying, This lawsuit is based on the obviously false premise that Ms. Lively's administrative complaint against Wayfarer and others was a ruse based on a choice 'not to file a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer,' and that 'litigation was never her ultimate goal.' As demonstrated by the federal complaint filed by Ms. Lively earlier today, that frame of reference for the Wayfarer lawsuit is false. While we will not litigate this matter in the press, we do encourage people to read Ms. Lively's complaint in its entirety. We look forward to addressing each and every one of Wayfarer's allegations in court.

Lively's lawsuit alleges that he and his public relations team had marshaled a sophisticated, multi-tiered plan to undermine her reputation in retaliation for speaking up about sexual misconduct on the set of the film. The complaint names Baldoni; his film studio, Wayfarer; and the two public relations representatives, Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel. Lively's attorneys issued a statement claiming that Wayfarer and its associates have violated federal and California state law by retaliating against her for reporting sexual harassment and workplace safety concerns. The statement also alleged that Baldoni initiated unwelcome physical advances, writing, When Ms. Lively or others avoided this touching, Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath would retaliate by becoming irritated, cold, and uncollaborative. The result was an unwelcoming and mercurial environment for Ms. Lively, her employees, and others on set.

On January 23. 2025, Lively's legal team unsuccessfully filed a gag order against Baldoni's attorney Bryan Freedman, accusing him of continuing to engage in a smear campaign against Lively by repeatedly revealing information to the press.

Justin Baldoni's lawsuit against Blake Lively

In response to Lively's lawsuit against him, on January 3, 2025, Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, told NBC that Baldoni plans to sue Lively, which he did.

On January 16, 2025, Baldoni's attorney filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist Leslie Sloan for civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy. The 179-page complaint, filed in the Southern District of New York, claims that Lively attempted to hijack control of the movie with demands and threats, and despite getting most of what she wanted, decided to accuse Baldoni of a smear campaign, to deflect attention and blame for Lively's disastrous misjudgments... Lively would recast herself as the long-suffering martyr by portraying Baldoni and Wayfarer as her persecutors, according to the complaint. Baldoni claims that the smear campaign alleged by Lively did not exist.

Baldoni contends that Lively, along with Reynolds and Sloan, engaged in a coordinated effort to tarnish his reputation, derail his career, and obscure the film's original purpose of highlighting domestic violence awareness. The suit also claims that Lively weaponized her influence, media connections, and a personal relationship with mega-celebrity Taylor Swift to create a false narrative. Thus causing significant financial and emotional harm to Baldoni and his collaborators.

Denied move for a gag order

On Jan 22, 2025, after Baldoni's team released footage from the set that contradicts a major claim in Lively's lawsuit, Lively requested a gag order against Justin Baldoni and his representation, saying that nearly every day since she filed her claim, Bryan Freedman (Baldoni's lawyer) has given interviews or leaked information which Lively's complaint states is a continuation of the initial retaliation harassment she wrote about in her first complaint. Sources for Baldoni said, it would be grossly unfair to impose a gag order after Justin has been defamed by The New York Times in an article that they say has cost him three jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars. The judge denied the gag order request. Justin Baldoni then launched a website called The Lawsuit Info, which presents his complaint and a timeline of the events.

Sources

• Clayton, Abené (January 4, 2025). "Justin Baldoni plans to sue Blake Lively after she accused him of harassment". The Guardian. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
• Wagmeister, Elizabeth (January 16, 2025). "Justin Baldoni sues Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds for $400 million, alleging Hollywood power couple sought to 'destroy' him". CNN. Retrieved January 16, 2025.