Justin Baldoni submitted photos in court of him at the It Ends Us With premiere in a separate room from the rest of the cast to back up his claim Blake Lively had him iced out at the event, In Touch can report.
The photo in question is being used in Justin’s lawsuit against Blake, 37, her publicist, Leslie Sloane, and her husband. Ryan Reynolds.
In his lawsuit, Justin, 40, demanded $400 million in damages for alleged defamation and extortion.
He claims things went downhill immediately after Blake was hired as the lead in It Ends With Us. The director claimed that Blake tried to seize control of the final cut of the film.
He said that she demanded the studio allow her to cut her own edit. Justin said Blake fired his team of editors and hired ones used by her husband.
Sony decided to test both Justin and Blake’s cut, per the lawsuit. Justin said despite his testing higher, Blake still demanded her cut be the one released in theaters.
The director said Blake also demanded an unearned producer credit and mark, which he said he was pressured into helping her obtain.
Justin accused Blake of using bullying tactics when she didn’t get her way. He said that while he was on vacation, he was informed that Blake demanded he not attend the film’s premiere on August 6, 2024.
The suit claims Blake threatened that if Justin did attend, she and the majority of the cast would boycott. Justin said Sony advised him to concede, which he says “underscores [Blake] and [Ryan’s] immense power and influence.”
He said he refused to “succumb to” Blake’s “bullying tactics” to exclude him and his studio Wayfarer from the premiere of the film — a project they had helped finance, produce and owned.
The suit said, “This threat marked the culmination of a year-long campaign of intimidation, harassment and civil extortion. Although objectively egregious and shocking, the Wayfarer team had unfortunately grown accustomed to the bullying, fully aware of the immense power this couple wielded and the far-reaching extent of their influence. However, they refused to give in to this entirely unreasonable demand and valiantly searched for a compromise with [Blake] so that they could attend the premiere of the Film that [Justin] had directed and costarred in and that Wayfarer had cofinanced and produced.”
Justin said his producing partner Jamey Heath “moved mountains to negotiate a scenario that [Blake] would permit (with the help of Sony, as [Blake] refused to speak to anyone connected with Wayfarer.” In his suit, Justin said he was unsure if he was allowed to attend even days before the premiere.
“His friends and family, most traveling from outside New York, were left in limbo, unable to finalize travel plans or book flights. [Justin] did the best he could to hide his pain. Despite still not having seen the final cut of the movie he co-starred, co-financed, and directed, he wanted to celebrate the culmination of his years of work with his family and friends,” his lawsuit read. Justin said Sony finally persuaded Blake to “permit” him and his team to attend “though only under demeaning and humiliating conditions.”
In another lawsuit, Justin described it as being “segregated” from the main cast members.
The suit alleges Justin and his team — along with their family and friends — were “relegated to a separate theater to view the Film, required to arrive at a different time than the rest of the cast, and instructed to leave the red carpet immediately once [Blake] arrived.”
“[Justin] was also excluded from the official celebrity after-party, despite it being an event ultimately paid for by Sony and Wayfarer. As a result, [Justin] had to quickly organize and fund a separate after-party for himself and the Wayfarer team, forcing the company to cover the costs for two events—one for Lively and everyone else, and one for [Justin] and Wayfarer’s own friends, family, crew and team,” his suit read.
Justin said he arrived and started doing interviews.
However, his time was cut short when the event organizers learned Blake was on her way. His lawyer wrote, “He and his family were quickly ushered away. Security personnel, acting as though there was a risk of “escape,” escorted [Justin’s] group to the basement of the building.” His suit continued, “There, they were confined to a makeshift holding area surrounded by concession stand stock, with only fold – out tables and chairs arranged in a square. Surrounded by close friends, family, soda bottles, and a lot of love, the irony of being held in a basement on what was arguably one of the most important nights of [Justin’s] career thus far, was not lost on anyone.”
Justin included two photos from the event showing him and his company celebrating the premiere in a basement. Justin, who rocked a bright pink suit, was seen smiling next to his family while they had tables covered popcorn bags. The director said the awful treatment continued. The suit continued, “Once the main theater was deemed ‘clear’ of [Blake] and her guests, [Justin] and his group were ushered into a separate theater to view the Film. At the conclusion of the screening, they were again quickly escorted out of the building by security to avoid even a chance of interaction with [Blake] or her guests.”
The incident is one of many complaints listed in Justin’s $400 million complaint.
Justin and Wayfarer’s powerhouse lawyer, Bryan Freedman, tells In Touch, “This lawsuit is a legal action based on an overwhelming amount of untampered evidence detailing Blake Lively and her team’s duplicitous attempt to destroy Justin Baldoni, his team and their respective companies by disseminating grossly edited, unsubstantiated, new and doctored information to the media. It is clear based on our own all out willingness to provide all complete text messages, emails, video footage and other documentary evidence that was shared between the parties in real time, that this is a battle she will not win and will certainly regret. Blake Lively was either severely misled by her team or intentionally and knowingly misrepresented the truth. Ms. Lively will never again be allowed to continue to exploit actual victims of real harassment solely for her personal reputation gain at the expense of those without power. Let’s not forget, Ms. Lively and her team attempted to bulldoze reputations and livelihoods for heinously selfish reasons through their own dangerous manipulation of the media before even taking any actual legal action. We know the truth, and now the public does too. Justin and his team have nothing to hide, documents do not lie.”
As In Touch previously reported, the legal drama started when Blake sued Justin and Jamey for sexual harassment on set of It Ends With Us.
The actress claimed Justin and Jamey came into her trailer uninvited while she was breastfeeding. Blake accused Justin of speaking about sex on set, improvising unwanted kissing scenes and speaking to her personal trainer behind her back. She also said Jamey showed her a video of his wife naked on set.
Justin and Jamey denied the allegations. Justin said Blake declined to meet with an intimacy coordinator before shooting.
The duo denied they barraged into Blake’s trailer and even submitted one alleged text showing she invited Justin into her trailer while pumping. Jamey said the video Blake complained about was a video his wife’s birth and it was being shown because they were shooting a birthing scene.
Blake said she made a list of demands that she wanted Justin and Jamey to agree to before they resume filming after a short break.
The actress said that Justin then hired a crisis PR team to smear her in retaliation. Justin denied the claims and accused Blake of being the one to smear him in the press. Both cases are ongoing.
In response to Justin’s lawsuit, Blake’s legal team told In Touch, “The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, it does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail.”
