Justin Baldoni called Blake Lively’s legal win a “false victory” after a judge threw out his £294m lawsuit.
Hollywood stars Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively remain locked in a bitter legal war after a judge dismissed Baldoni’s £294 million defamation lawsuit, prompting the furious actor to lash out at what he calls Blake’s “false victory.” The explosive courtroom battle follows a chain of lawsuits triggered by their work together on the film It Ends With Us.
The feud erupted when Blake Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment. Baldoni, vehemently denying the claims, retaliated with a mammoth £294 million ($400 million) defamation lawsuit against Lively, her publicist Leslie Sloane, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and The New York Times, which covered the allegations. He also launched a separate £183 million ($250 million) libel case against the newspaper.
But on Monday, US District Judge Lewis J. Liman threw out Baldoni’s defamation lawsuit, ruling that Lively’s allegations were made within privileged court papers and therefore not defamatory. Blake’s legal team immediately declared “total victory” and “complete vindication” for the star, sparking celebrations among her supporters.
Yet Baldoni and his lawyers quickly hit back, dismissing Blake’s triumph as hollow and misleading. Speaking to The Mirror, his attorney Bryan Freedman branded her win a “false declaration of victory.” He argued, “While the Court dismissed the defamation-related claims, it invited us to amend four out of the seven claims against Ms. Lively, which will showcase additional evidence and refined allegations.”
Freedman continued, “This case is about false accusations of sexual harassment, retaliation, and a fabricated smear campaign. Ms. Lively’s team conveniently describes it as ‘untraceable’ because they cannot prove what never happened.”
Doubling down on their claims, Baldoni’s team remains confident, stating: “We march forward with the same confidence we had when Ms. Lively and her cohorts initiated this battle. We look forward to her forthcoming deposition, which I will be taking.”
The high-profile legal brawl has captivated Hollywood and social media. Blake Lively, stepping out at the Chanel Tribeca Festival Artists Dinner just hours after the ruling, remained defiant. Her spokesperson told the Daily Mail: “Today’s opinion is a total victory and a complete vindication for Blake Lively, along with those that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties dragged into their retaliatory lawsuit.” The statement slammed Baldoni’s lawsuit as a sham that the court saw through, adding that they will now seek attorneys’ fees, treble damages, and punitive damages against Baldoni and his team.
Blake also took to Instagram to share a powerful message following the court decision. “Last week, I stood proudly alongside 19 organisations united in defending women’s rights to speak up for their safety,” she wrote. “Like so many others, I’ve felt the pain of a retaliatory lawsuit, including the manufactured shame that tries to break us. While the suit against me was defeated, so many don’t have the resources to fight back.”
She added, “I’m more resolved than ever to continue to stand for every woman’s right to have a voice in protecting themselves — their safety, their integrity, their dignity, and their story.”
As the legal drama rages on, both sides show no signs of backing down. Baldoni’s legal team is preparing to amend and resubmit parts of their lawsuit, while Lively’s camp remains adamant they’ve emerged victorious. The Hollywood power clash has become one of the industry’s most high-profile legal showdowns in years — with millions of dollars, reputations, and careers hanging in the balance.
