Justin Baldoni’s lawyer has responded to Blake Lively’s recent request for a gag order amid the pair’s ongoing legal drama.
According to a letter obtained by Us Weekly on Friday, January 24, Baldoni’s attorney Kevin Fritz asked the judge to deny the gag order if it is formally requested by Lively’s team. Fritz argued that Lively, 37, started the “media feeding frenzy” and claimed that she provided The New York Times with a copy of her original complaint which included her allegations against Baldoni, 41, and his studio, Wayfarer.
“The results have been utterly calamitous for Mr. Baldoni and the other Wayfarer Parties, who instantly became objects of public scorn and contempt,” the letter read. “Already, the Wayfarer Parties have been exiled from polite society and suffered damages totaling hundreds of millions of dollars due to Ms. Lively’s scorched-earth media campaign.”
Fritz claimed that the move made by Lively’s legal team was an “intimidation tactic” especially after Baldoni’s team recently released unseen footage from It Ends With Us that includes Baldoni and Lively interacting during a dance scene.
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“The Lively Parties’ desire to force the Wayfarer Parties to defend themselves privately against allegations made publicly is not a proper basis for a gag order,” the letter continued. “It is tactical gamesmanship, and it is outrageous.”
The decision will be discussed at a conference scheduled for February 12.
Us has reached out to Baldoni and Lively’s reps for comment.
Earlier this week, Bryan Freedman, who is an additional lawyer for Baldoni, released the video in an attempt to disprove Lively’s side of the story.
The footage obtained by Us on Tuesday, January 21, began with a statement that read, “Ms. Lively’s complaint alleges that during a scene Mr. Baldoni and Ms. Lively were filming for a slow dance montage, Mr. Baldoni was behaving inappropriately. The following videos captured on May 23, 2023, clearly refute Ms. Lively’s characterization of his behavior. The scene in question was designed to show the two characters falling in love and longing to be close to one another. Both actors are clearly behaving well within the scope of the scene and with mutual respect and professionalism. These are all three takes filmed of the sequence.”
The footage showed a scene that has come up in both of Lively and Baldoni’s lawsuits. In the video, Lively and Baldoni were seen discussing his nose and the smell of her spray tan. (Baldoni claimed in his court docs that Lively told him to get a nose job. Lively, for her part, alleged that Baldoni was not in character when he complimented her scent.)
After the video made headlines, Lively’s legal team responded to the clip, claiming that it was “damming” as it corroborated her recount.
Blake Lively Breaks Silence on Justin Baldoni ‘It Ends With Us’ Footage
“The video shows Mr. Baldoni repeatedly leaning in toward Ms. Lively, attempting to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smells, and talking with her out of character,” Lively’s legal team said in a statement to Us on Tuesday.
The following day, Us obtained a letter that Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, filed in court on Tuesday, wanting a protective order to stop Freedman from engaging in “improper conduct” against the couple. The pair claimed Freedman was violating court rules that stop a lawyer from addressing the press with statements that are not related to the case and could potentially prejudice a jury.
Lively and Baldoni’s legal drama began last month when she filed a lawsuit against the director claiming that he sexually harassed her and created a hostile work environment while on the set of It Ends With Us. Baldoni has vehemently denied the allegations. He subsequently sued the New York Times for $250 million for the outlet’s reporting of Lively’s claims against him. Baldoni also sued Lively, Reynolds, and Lively’s publicist, Leslie Sloane, and is seeking $400 million in damages.
