Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively.Photo:James Devaney/GC Images; Ian West/PA Images via Getty
James Devaney/GC Images; Ian West/PA Images via Getty
Justin Baldoniis suing theNew York Timesafter it reported that he and his public relations team were behind a smear campaign against hisIt Ends With UscostarBlake Likely.
After Lively filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, theTimespublished “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine” on Saturday, Dec. 21.
The plaintiffs, including Baldoni andIt Ends With Usproducers Jamey Heath, Steve Sarowitz, along with Jed Wallace, and publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, accuse theTimesof using “‘cherry-picked’ and altered communications stripped of necessary context and deliberately spliced to mislead" in the article.
In response, the New York Times defended its article as “meticulously and responsibly reported.”
“The Article’s central thesis, encapsulated in a defamatory headline designed to immediately mislead the reader, is that Plaintiffs orchestrated a retaliatory public relations campaign against Lively for speaking out about sexual harassment—a premise that is categorically false and easily disproven,” read the complaint.
Justin Baldoni on August 06, 2024 in New York City.John Nacion/Variety via Getty
John Nacion/Variety via Getty
The complaint then lists multiple examples refuting claims that were allegedly made out of context.
For example, theTimesarticle wrote that “[Baldoni] repeatedly entered [Lively’s] makeup trailer uninvited while she was undressed, including when she was breastfeeding.”
However, Baldoni’s complaint shows alleged text messages from Lively that read, “I’m just pumping in my trailer if you wanna work out our lines.” Baldoni responded, “Copy. Eating with crew and will head that way,” which the lawsuit claims shows Baldoni did not enter uninvited.
The complaint also contains text messages between Baldoni’s PR team showing concerns over reports they were “planting stories.” The plaintiffs claim these exchanges disprove there they manufactured a smear campaign against the actress. The complaint claims that Baldoni “consistently expressed his desire to avoid harming Lively and protect the Film but also recognized a legitimate need for public relations protection in light of Lively’s false and damaging claims.”
Freedman continued: “In doing so, they pre-determined the outcome of their story, and aided and abetted their own devastating PR smear campaign designed to revitalize Lively’s self-induced floundering public image and counter the organic groundswell of criticism amongst the online public.”
Blake Lively on December 11, 2024 in New York, New York.Katie Jones/Beauty Inc via Getty
Katie Jones/Beauty Inc via Getty
In a statement to PEOPLE, a New York Times spokesperson said they plan to “vigorously” defend against Baldoni’s lawsuit.
“The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead,” theTimesspokesperson said. “Ourstorywas meticulously and responsibly reported. It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including the text messages and emails that we quote accurately and at length in the article. To date, Wayfarer Studios, Mr. Baldoni, the other subjects of the article and their representatives have not pointed to a single error. We published theirfull statementin response to the allegations in the article as well.”
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Lively’s 80-page complaint included allegations that Baldonisexually harassed her and developed a retaliatory public smear campaign against her.
The actress alleged that she was caused “grief, fear, trauma, and extreme anxiety” as a result of Baldoni’s alleged behavior, including showing her explicit images and videos, asking her about her personal sex life and attempting to add intimate scenes to the film that she had not originally agreed to.
The actress also claimed that Baldoni, alongside his publicist Jennifer Abel and crisis firm TAG PR’s Melissa Nathan, was attempting tomanipulate social media and work alongside the press to “destroy” her reputation.
On Tuesday, Dec. 31, Lively’s attorneys filed a federal complaint against Wayfarer Studios, Baldoni and other parties in the Southern District of New York.
Representatives for the actress did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
source: people.com
