Blake Lively Versus Justin Baldoni's Version of 'It Ends With Us'
The knives are well and truly out when it comes to Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s professional relationship.
Both Lively, 37, and Baldoni, 40, have alleged in their respective legal battles that they each had a hand in creating different cuts of the film at the center of the drama, It Ends With Us.
In her complaint, Lively detailed alleged changes that Baldoni made during the filming of the Colleen Hoover book adaption.
She claimed that additional “graphic” scenes were added that weren’t originally present in the script.
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One of the alleged graphic scenes described in the complaint was a scene requiring Lively to “orgasm on camera” – a scene that did not appear in the original script.
“After Ms. Lively signed onto the movie based on a draft of the script, Mr. Baldoni, without Ms. Lively’s knowledge or consent, personally added graphic content, including a scene in which
Ms. Lively was to orgasm on-camera,” the complaint read. “When Ms. Lively objected to these additions, Mr. Baldoni insisted he had added them because he was making the Film ‘through the female gaze.’”
The legal document went on to describe a simultaneous climax scene that Lively claimed Baldoni advocated to include.
“Although he agreed to remove the scenes, he made a last-ditch attempt to keep one in which the couple orgasm together on their wedding night, which he said was important to him because he and his partner climax simultaneously during intercourse,” the complaint read. “Mr. Baldoni then intrusively asked Ms. Lively whether she and her husband climax simultaneously during intercourse, which Ms. Lively found invasive and refused to discuss.”
According to Lively’s complaint, Baldoni also allegedly added a scene involving the younger version of her character Lily (played by Isabela Ferrer) losing her virginity.
“Mr. Baldoni added a detailed scene to the Film in which the underage version of Ms. Lively’s character, Lily, loses her virginity. In both the book and the script for the film, there was no sex scene; instead, the details about this moment were left to the audience’s imagination.” the complaint read.
It continued: “But Mr. Baldoni, added in considerable details, including both dialogue between Young Lily and her boyfriend (Atlas) about the loss of her virginity, as well as a simulated sex scene in which Mr. Baldoni filmed, and included in his initial cut of the Film, a close up of Young Lily’s face, accompanied by an audible gasp at the moment of penetration. Ms. Lively was informed that when this scene was shot, after Mr. Baldoni called “cut,” he walked over to the actors and said, ‘I know I’m not supposed to say this, but that was hot,” and, “did you two practice this before?’”
Baldoni filed a $250 million lawsuit against The New York Times on Tuesday, December 31. The actor and director is suing for libel and false light invasion of privacy following The New York Times’ reporting on costar Lively after she sued him for sexual harassment.
The director was one of 10 plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which also includes publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel as well as It Ends With Us producers James Heath and Steve Saraowitz, who began legal proceedings against the media outlet.
In his complaint, Baldoni claimed two different, competing edits of It Ends With Us emerged during production – one overseen by him and the other commissioned by Lively. Baldoni claimed his version tested significantly higher than Lively’s with focus groups.
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The same day Baldoni sued The New York Times, Lively officially filed a lawsuit against Baldoni, Nathan and Abel, along with Wayfarer Studios in the Southern District of New York.
The lawsuit alleged sexual harassment, retaliation, breach of contract, infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy and lost wages. The claims parallel those made in Lively’s complaint filed with the California Civil Rights Department last week.
Lively spoke out about her legal action via a Saturday, December 21 statement to Us Weekly.
“I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted,” she said.
A New York Times spokesperson told Us Weekly in a statement on Tuesday, December 31 that the outlet is planning to “vigorously defend against the lawsuit.”
“The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead,” the statement read. “Our story was 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. Those texts and emails were also the crux of a discrimination claim filed in California by Blake Lively against Justin Baldoni and his associates.”
The statement continued, “To address some inaccuracies in the lawsuit, when seeking comments from Mr. Baldoni and others who would be mentioned in the article, The Times shared the information that we intended to publish, including references to specific text messages and documents, asked them to identify any inaccuracies, provide additional context and speak with our team. Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer and the other subjects chose not to have any conversations with The Times or address any of the specific text messages or documents and instead emailed a joint response, which was published in full. (Also, they sent their response to The Times at 11:16 p.m. ET Dec 20th, not at 2:16 a.m. ET Dec 21st as the complaint says.)”
In response to Baldoni filing the lawsuit, Lively’s attorney told Us on Tuesday, December 31 that the lawsuit was based on an “obviously false premise.”
“Nothing in this lawsuit changes anything about the claims advanced in Ms. Lively’s California Civil Rights Department Complaint, nor her federal complaint, filed earlier today,” the statement read. “This lawsuit is based on the obviously false premise that Ms. Lively’s administrative complaint against Wayfarer and others was a ruse based on a choice “not to file a lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer,” and that “litigation was never her ultimate goal.” As demonstrated by the federal complaint filed by Ms. Lively earlier today, that frame of reference for the Wayfarer lawsuit is false. While we will not litigate this matter in the press, we do encourage people to read Ms. Lively’s complaint in its entirety. We look forward to addressing each and every one of Wayfarer’s allegations in court.”
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni's Reported 'It Ends With Us' Drama Explained
Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman also shared a statement with Us Weekly, vowing to “take down” The New York Times for its “vicious smear campaign.”
“In this vicious smear campaign fully orchestrated by Blake Lively and her team, the New York Times cowered to the wants and whims of two powerful ‘untouchable’ Hollywood elites, disregarding journalistic practices and ethics once befitting of the revered publication by using doctored and manipulated texts and intentionally omitting texts which dispute their chosen PR narrative,” he said via a statement to Us on Tuesday, December 31. “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. The irony is rich.”
He continued: “Make no mistake however, as we all unite to take down The NY Times by no longer allowing them to deceive the public, we will continue this campaign of authenticity by also suing those individuals who have abused their power to try and destroy the lives of my clients. While their side embraces partial truths, we embrace the full truth – and have all of the communications to back it. The public will decide for themselves as they did when this first began.”
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