Blake Lively breaks silence amid legal battle with Justin Baldoni: “Fear is what keeps us silent”
Hollywood actor Blake Lively made her first late-night interview appearance since the legal battle between her and Justin Baldoni began.
In January, the It Ends With Us director and star filed a $400 million suit against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, claiming that they tried to destroy his career and hijack the movie, which Lively starred in alongside Baldoni, with sexual harassment allegations, which he denies.
On May 1st, Lively appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers to promote her new movie, Another Simple Favour. This sequel to the 2018 crime thriller A Simple Favour, co-starring Anna Kendrick, was made available on Amazon Prime on May 1st.
In the interview, she refused to reference Baldoni by name, instead hinting at difficulties in her personal life: “This year has been full of the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life. And I see so many women around afraid to speak, especially right now. Afraid to share their experiences. And fear is by design. It’s what keeps us silent,” she declared.
She went on to acknowledge her own privilege in the difficult situation, which has been closely followed by the public, stating, “I also acknowledge that many people don’t have the opportunity to speak. So I do feel fortunate that I’ve been able to.”
Lively continued with a tribute to the female forces in her life: “And it’s the women who had had the ability to use their voice that’s kept me strong and helped me in my belief and my fight for the world to be safer for women and girls. It’s a pretty simple thing.”
In the latest updates on the case, Lively’s attorneys motioned to dismiss the suit, arguing that her allegations were protected by litigation privilege. They also pointed to the Protecting Survivors from Weaponized Defamation Lawsuits Act of 2023, which was created to shield sexual harassment victims from vindictive defamation suits filed in response to their accusations.
However, Baldoni’s team have argued that this law only applies to non-malicious claims made with a “reasonable basis.” They claim Lively falsified her allegations, therefore, the suit should be allowed to stand. Baldoni has also requested documents about Deadpool & Wolverine, as the filmmaker believes Reynolds and Lively were mocking him with the character Nicepool.
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