Blake Lively has filed a legal complaint against her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, alleging sexual harassment and orchestrating a public relations campaign to harm her reputation. The complaint, lodged with the California Civil Rights Department as a precursor to a lawsuit, also names Baldoni’s production company, Wayfarer Studios, other associates, and PR consultants as defendants.
Allegations of Harassment and Misconduct
Lively’s complaint outlines numerous accusations against Baldoni and the film’s producer, Jamey Heath. These include barging into her trailer while she was undressed, improvising unplanned intimate scenes, and discussing explicit personal matters. The complaint also alleges Baldoni permitted his friends to observe the filming of Lively’s intimate scenes and admitted to not always obtaining consent in his past sexual encounters.
Specific agreements made during a January meeting between Lively, Baldoni, Heath, and representatives of the film’s distributor were allegedly ignored. These agreements prohibited inappropriate conduct, unwanted touching, and improvising intimate scenes without prior consent.
Claims of Retaliation Campaign
The complaint includes messages obtained via subpoena, allegedly showing Baldoni and PR consultants conspiring to tarnish Lively’s reputation. Co-defendant Melissa Nathan of The Agency Group PR LLC purportedly coordinated a retaliatory smear campaign, including astroturfing efforts that seeded fake negative opinions about Lively online.
