Blake Lively Files Sexual Harassment Complaint Against ‘It Ends With Us’ Costar Justin Baldoni

Blake Lively filed a sexual harassment complaint against her “It Ends With Us” costar Justin Baldoni Friday. Lively’s documents claim Baldoni’s behavior caused her “severe emotional distress.” The complaint also names the film’s producer Jamey Heath, businessman Steve Sarowitz, crisis manager Melissa Nathan, Jennifer Abel, RWA Communications, Street Relations Inc., and Jed Wallace.

Documents obtained by the New York Times reveal a group meeting was held to address Lively’s concern, and that her husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, also attended. The topics discussed reportedly included “no more showing nude videos or images of women, including producer’s wife to BL and/or her employees, no more mention of Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath’s alleged previous ‘pornography addiction’ or BL’s lack of pornography consumption to BL or to other crew members” as well as no further discussions to BL and/or her employees about personal experiences with sex.” Baldoni was also forbidden from speaking to Lively about her late father and “no more descriptions of their own genitalia to BL.”

The demands also included, “No more adding of sex scenes, oral sex or on camera climaxing by BL outside the scope of the script BL approved when signing onto the project.” Sony Pictures reportedly approved of each of Lively’s points.

Lively’s legal team also accuses Baldoni of attempting to damage her reputation following the film’s release by way of “social manipulation.” She told the Times in a statement, “I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted.”

Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman wrote, “These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.”

Freedman has not yet responded to TheWrap’s request for comment.

Baldoni and the film’s lead producer, Jamey Heath, hired a crisis public relations expert — who previously worked with Johnny Depp and Travis Scott — ahead of the movie’s release. While filming, Lively “had complained that the men had repeatedly violated physical boundaries and made sexual and other inappropriate comments to her.” As a result, the studio hired an intimacy coordinator and agreed not to retaliate against the actress.

But instead, the men shifted gears, Lively’s complaint also claims, and began to build a PR machine against her. Her court documents also include “excerpts from thousands of pages of text messages and emails that she obtained through a subpoena” that were reviewed by the Times.

“There have long been figures behind the scenes shaping public opinion about celebrities — through gossip columns, tabloids and strategic interviews,” the publication noted. “The documents show an additional playbook for waging a largely undetectable smear campaign in the digital era. While the film, about domestic violence, was a box office hit — making nearly $350 million worldwide — online criticism of the actress skyrocketed.”

In one text, a publicist working with Baldoni wrote “He wants to feel like she can be buried.” The crisis management expert, Melissa Nathan, texted back, “You know we can bury anyone.”

Lively also claims Baldoni “had improvised unwanted kissing and discussed his sex life, including encounters in which he said he may not have received consent” and that Heath “had shown her a video of his wife naked” and “had watched Ms. Lively in her trailer when she was topless and having body makeup removed, despite her asking him to look away.”

“Throughout filming, Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath invaded Ms. Lively’s privacy by
entering her makeup trailer uninvited while she was undressed, including when she was breastfeeding her infant child,” the documents add. “Ms. Lively often had to work while breastfeeding, which she felt comfortable doing so long as she was given the time and space to cover herself. She did this frequently, because she was not given breaks to feed her baby, but Ms. Lively did not expect or consent to anyone entering her private spaces while topless, exposed, and vulnerable with her newborn, or during body makeup application or removal.

“Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath both showed a shocking lack of boundaries by invading her personal space when she was undressed and vulnerable.”

Baldoni is also accused of repeatedly suggesting Lively, who gave birth to her fourth child before filming began, lose weight. In one instance he “secretly called her fitness trainer, without her knowledge or permission, and implied that he wanted her to lose weight in two weeks. Mr. Baldoni told the trainer that he had asked because he was concerned about having to pick Ms. Lively up in a scene for the movie, but there was no such scene.”

In a second, he offered to connect Lively with an expert to help her recover from strep throat during filming. “When Ms. Lively went to fill out the privacy forms, she saw the expert was not what Mr. Baldoni had represented her to be, but was instead a weight-loss specialist. Ms. Lively felt, once again, that Mr. Baldoni was shaming her for her body and weight.”

The Times noted a report produced in August for Lively by brand marketing consultant Terakeet concluded the actress’ reputation had been damaged by a “targeted, multichannel online attack” and that 35% of Google searches for Lively’s name also referenced Baldoni — something that “was highly unusual given the length of her career, the company said, and suggested that the media environment was being manipulated.”

Lively’s complaint was filed with the California Civil Rights Department and is the first step toward filing a lawsuit. After the CRD accepts a complaint for investigation the documents are sent to the party that is believed to have discriminated against the person who brought the complaint. A lawsuit is filed if the CRD determines the allegations fall under its purview.

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