A federal judge has dismissed the majority of claims in the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by actress Blake Lively against her “It Ends with Us” co-star, Justin Baldoni.
Judge Lewis Liman dismissed 10 of the 13 allegations in Lively’s case, including claims of harassment and defamation.
However, three claims against Baldoni – breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation – remain and are set to proceed to a civil trial in New York on May 18.
The legal dispute in Hollywood began in 2024 when Lively sued Baldoni, alleging harassment and a smear campaign on the set of their upcoming movie. Baldoni has denied the allegations and filed a countersuit.
Sigrid McCawley, a member of Lively’s legal team, told CBS, the BBC’s U.S. partner, that the case “has always been and will remain focused on the devastating retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy” her client’s reputation.
She noted that the sexual harassment claims were dropped, “not because the defendants did nothing wrong,” but due to a legal technicality.
McCawley stated that Lively plans to testify during the trial and continue “to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation.”
The BBC has reached out to Baldoni’s lawyers for comment.
Last year, a judge dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit against Lively, which alleged civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy.
The case originates from interactions between Baldoni and Lively during the production of “It Ends With Us,” an adaptation of the best-selling novel by Colleen Hoover.
The film stars Lively as Lily Bloom, the main character, a young woman who witnessed domestic abuse as a child and later finds herself in a similar situation.
Lively’s legal team has accused Baldoni and his film studio, Wayfarer, of plotting to damage her reputation, including through social media manipulation and the use of friendly journalists to promote specific narratives.
She shared details of the allegations in a New York Times article published prior to filing the lawsuit.
Lively filed the lawsuit against Baldoni’s Wayfarer Studios in December 2024, alleging sexual harassment on set and retaliation for raising those complaints, among other claims.
In his 152-page opinion issued on Thursday, Judge Liman cited multiple reasons for dismissing the majority of claims against Baldoni.
He stated that Lively’s harassment claims against Baldoni under California law were not valid because the alleged misconduct occurred during filming in New Jersey.
“None of these acts or occurrences provides the ‘substantial connection’ to California needed to sustain Lively’s sexual harassment claims,” Liman wrote.
The judge also stated that Lively was ineligible to bring certain claims of harassment and retaliation because she was an independent contractor rather than an employee.
Lively had also accused Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, of defaming her through a series of statements.
However, Liman ruled that because these statements and others directly referenced the allegations Baldoni was facing in court, Lively’s claim of defamation was not upheld.
“To be sure, much of what Lively complains about is not actionable. The Wayfarer Parties were entitled to engage public relations and crisis management specialists to protect their reputations,” Liman wrote. “However, certain conduct at least arguably crossed the line.”
The judge determined that some of the retaliation claims brought by Lively, in which she accuses Baldoni of engaging in a “coordinated campaign” to attack her character and reputation, warranted a trial.
Shortly after Lively’s lawsuit, Baldoni filed defamation cases against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, claiming they aimed to ruin his career and reputation with the allegations, as well as the New York Times.
He alleged that Lively “stole the film” from him and Wayfarer by threatening not to promote it, and that she and others perpetuated a false narrative that Baldoni had harassed her and launched a smear campaign against her.
However, in June, Judge Liman dismissed Baldoni’s lawsuit, stating that his team had “not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible hard bargaining or renegotiation of working conditions.”
Evidence in the legal battle has included derogatory text messages between Lively and Taylor Swift about Baldoni.
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