A slew of stars have shown their support for Blake Lively after she filed an explosive lawsuit against her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni.
In a complaint filed Friday with the California Department of Civil Rights, Lively, 37, accused Baldoni, 40, of sexual harassment and attempting to “destroy” her reputation.
Since news of the lawsuit broke on Saturday, December 21, Hollywood’s finest have come forward to defend the actress.
Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants co-stars America Ferrera, Amber Rose Tamblyn and Alexis Bledel posted a joint letter on Instagram applauding their longtime ‘friend and sister’ for ‘fighting back’ against Baldoni.
“As friends and sisters of Blake for over 20 years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights against the alleged campaign undertaken to destroy her reputation,” the statement said.
“Throughout the filming of It Ends With Us, we saw her muster the courage to ask for a safe workplace for herself and her colleagues on set, and we were horrified to read the evidence of a premeditated and vindictive effort that followed to discredit her voice. ‘
Colleen Hoover, author of It Ends With Us, also expressed her support for Lively.
She shared a post on her Instagram stories and wrote: ‘@blakelively you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met.
A slew of stars have shown their support for Blake Lively after she filed an explosive lawsuit against her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni.
Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants co-stars posted a joint letter on Instagram applauding their longtime ‘friend and sister’ for ‘fighting back’ against Baldoni.
“As friends and sisters of Blake for over 20 years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights against the alleged campaign undertaken to destroy her reputation,” the statement said.
‘Thank you for being exactly the human being that you are. Never change. Never wither.’
Director Paul Feig, who worked with Lively on A Simple Favor and its sequel, also spoke out in Lively’s favor.
“I’ve done two movies with Blake and all I can say is that he is one of the most professional, creative, collaborative, talented and kind people I’ve ever worked with,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“She really didn’t deserve any of this smear campaign against her. I think it’s horrible that I went through this.
Additionally, Amber Heard has weighed in on the ordeal and said that she, too, knows what it feels like to be the victim of a smear campaign.
In a statement to NBC News about Lively’s claims, Amber said: “Social media is the absolute embodiment of the classic saying, ‘A lie travels halfway around the world before the truth can put on its boots.’
‘I saw this first hand and up close. It is as horrifying as it is destructive.”
Baldoni, who has since been fired from his talent agency, hired TAG PR publicist Melissa Nathan in August of this year when stories emerged about the start of the drama.
Colleen Hoover, author of It Ends With Us, also expressed her support for Lively, writing, “You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met.”
Comedian Amy Schumer also showed her support for Lively, simply writing on her Instagram Stories: “I believe in Blake.”
Director Paul Feig, who worked with Lively on A Simple Favor and its sequel, also spoke out in Lively’s favor.
Nathan founded the company in August this year, but previously worked for the same firm Johnny Depp hired to help him get through his trial with Heard.
Comedian Amy Schumer also showed her support for Lively, simply writing on her Instagram Stories: “I believe in Blake.”
His comment was particularly poignant as he had previously taken aim at Lively on her sketch show Inside Amy Schumer in 2015, publicly admitting at the time, “We’re not close friends.”
The film, based on Hoover’s 2016 bestseller, followed Lily Bloom, a florist played by Lively, who falls in love with a charming but abusive neurosurgeon, played by Baldoni, who also directed it.
The film, which was released in August, was a box office success, grossing more than $350 million against a production budget of $25 million.
But behind-the-scenes drama has continually overshadowed the film’s commercial success.
Lively claimed in the legal filing that Baldoni entered her makeup trailer while she was topless, showed her pornographic photographs and a graphic video of his own wife giving birth, repeatedly discussed her “addiction to pornography,” described her own genitals and even, in one horrifying incident: biting and sucking on Lively’s lips during an improvised kissing scene for which Baldoni insisted on doing several takes.
Production on It Ends With Us was delayed to 2023 due to a writers’ strike. And one day before filming resumed, a meeting was held to address the set’s “hostile work environment,” according to the lawsuit.
Additionally, Amber Heard has weighed in on the ordeal and said that she, too, knows what it feels like to be the victim of a smear campaign.
In a complaint filed Friday with the California Department of Civil Rights, Lively, 37, accused Baldoni, 40, of sexual harassment and attempting to “destroy” her reputation.
During the meeting, Lively made 30 demands of her It Ends With Us co-star and others on set, as revealed in her legal complaint against Baldoni.
The new “rules” for the production stated that Lively should be replaced by a “top stunt double” for scenes involving “rape and/or violence” with Baldoni.
They also said that Baldoni must not add any new ‘sex scenes, oral sex or on-camera climaxes’ that are not in the previously agreed upon script, and that an intimacy coordinator must be hired on set whenever the two stars share a scene.
The rules weren’t even exclusively related to sexual misconduct.
Other demands included that Baldoni stop claiming that he was “talking” to Lively’s dead father and that he stop asking her about her weight, which she claimed was akin to fat shaming.
Baldoni, through his company Wayfarer Studios, appeared to agree with the demands, writing in a formal response letter: “While our perspective differs in many ways, ensuring a safe environment for everyone is paramount, regardless of different points of view. view”.
“With respect to the requests described, we consider the majority of them to be not only reasonable but also essential for the benefit of all parties involved.”
Filming duly resumed on January 5 and concluded just over a month later on February 9.
Lively claimed in the legal filing that Baldoni entered her makeup trailer while she was topless, showed her pornographic photographs and a graphic video of his own wife giving birth.
In addition to accusing him of “repeated sexual harassment,” Lively (seen with her husband) claimed that Baldoni and his team had coordinated a smear campaign to “destroy” her.
It seemed like the last month of filming was a success, and Lively told close friends and colleagues that Baldoni’s behavior had noticeably improved.
However, as soon as the movie wrapped, Lively alleged that the problems started again.
During the press tour prior to the film’s release, rumors of an ongoing feud between Blake and Justin dominated the headlines, causing the tracks to face intense scrutiny online.
In addition to accusing him of “repeated sexual harassment,” Lively also claimed that Baldoni and his team had coordinated a smear campaign to “destroy” her reputation in the 80-page lawsuit.
Private messages and emails obtained through a subpoena filed by the actress detailed the alleged plot, several sent by Hollywood crisis management expert Nathan.
Justin’s team refuted the allegations and stated that the legal action is an attempt to repair Blake’s reputation.