Justin Baldoni’s defamation lawsuit confirms initial tension rumors with Blake Lively during ‘It Ends With Us’

If you followed the drama between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively on It ends with usthen you know the speculation about what happened between them started the moment they walked onto the red carpet premiere. At the time, several sources speculated about creative differences between Lively and Baldoni, who also served as director and producer. Now, after legal action has been taken on both sides, fans are finding out what those differences really were.

On December 31, Baldoni filed a $250 million lawsuit New York Times charges expired of libel and false light invasion of privacy for their story that broke Lively’s sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit against him.

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“The Times the story relied almost entirely on Lively’s uncorroborated and self-serving narrative, lifting it almost verbatim while ignoring an abundance of evidence that contradicted her claims and revealed her true motives,” the lawsuit reads, as of Us Weekly.

Among the charges Baldoni made in the lawsuit was that, in addition to denying most of the allegations Lively made against him, Lively essentially removed him from the film.

“She has officially kicked me out of the movie now,” Baldoni wrote in a text chain with the film’s editors. “She’s finishing it all. I can’t be there. Music sound VFX everything. I’ll make it somehow. Just need to feel it all.”

That control only continued when Lively reportedly asked to be in the editing bay during the film’s 10-week “protected” period, a time when only the director has full access and control.

“As a seasoned professional with over twenty years of experience in the entertainment industry — and having grown up in a family deeply involved in the field — Lively was fully aware of the implications of her request,” the suit explained. “In fact, her request expressly acknowledged that it violated Baldoni’s ‘protected period.’ two days.”

But the two days reportedly soon turned into 10, including a time when Lively edited alone. But that’s not where the accusations end. According to the suit, Lively then reportedly fired the film’s editors and hired her own, which included Shane Reid, who edited her husband Ryan Reynolds’ film Deadpool and Wolverine.

Then, a few months later, Lively’s control over the film continued as she “systematically cut (him) out of marketing his own film,” the suit states, per New York Post.

“Further undermining Baldoni’s role, Lively initially refused to allow his attendance at the film’s premiere,” archived detail from the Aug. 6 premiere in New York City. “Only after considerable pressure did she reluctantly agree to allow Baldoni and the Wayfarer team to participate, but under humiliating conditions.”

According to the filing, Baldoni and his team were given limited time on the carpet and “were confined to a temporary seating area in the basement before being escorted to a separate theater after Lively’s departure.”

“Not only had Lively stolen the film, but she also robbed Baldoni and his team of any real opportunity to celebrate their hard work,” the suit adds.

With everything that happened between them, it’s no secret that they are now fighting in court.

Before you go, click here to see the most important celebrity cases of the past 15 years.

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