Blake Lively denies Justin Baldoni’s lawyer’s claims that she blackmailed Taylor Swift
Blake Lively has blackmailed Taylor Swift, according to Justin Baldoni’s legal team, in the latest twist in the It Ends With Us case.
Baldoni’s lawyers claim that their subpoena seeks to show Lively’s “threats” made to her close friend Swift. Their case argues that the actor threatened her global superstar confidant to support her in the legal battle publicly, which Lively’s legal team strongly denies.
The situation between the two actors began on December 31st, 2024, when Blake Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni, producer Jamey Heath and his publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel.
Her suit accused Baldoni and others of orchestrating a media smear campaign against her, including messages sent between Baldoni and his publicist. On January 16th, Baldoni sued Blake Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, for $400 million, claiming they sought to “destroy him”.
Swift was recently subpoenaed, a move her team worked hard to resist. Swift’s spokesperson reiterated her desire to be left out of the proceedings: “Taylor Swift never set foot on the set of this movie, she was not involved in any casting or creative decisions, she did not score the film, she never saw an edit or made any notes on the film, she did not even see It Ends With Us until weeks after its public release, and was traveling around the globe during 2023 and 2024 headlining the biggest tour in history.”
Baldoni’s lawyers responded in a letter to the judge on May 14th, arguing why they believe the subpoena is necessary. In this letter, lawyer Bryan Freedman reveals they got the information from an anonymous “source who is highly likely to have reliable information”.
Another allegation included in the letter suggests Lively’s attorney contacted Swift’s attorney to demand “that Ms. Swift release a statement of support for Ms. Lively.” Also, the letter allegedly stated that “if Ms. Swift refused to do so, private text messages of a personal nature in Ms. Lively’s possession would be released.”
A lawyer for Lively calls the allegation “categorically false.”
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