• Blake Lively filed a legal complaint against her "It Ends with Us" costar, Justin Baldoni.
• Taylor Swift and Hailey Bieber appeared in the complaint.
• Lively's complaint said Baldoni and his team conspired to damage her reputation.

In a new legal complaint, Blake Lively said that her "It Ends with Us" costar, Justin Baldoni, who also directed and produced the film, conspired to damage her reputation and credibility.

The complaint also mentions Taylor Swift and Hailey Bieber.

Lively named Baldoni and six other defendants in her complaint, including the CEO and cofounder of his production studio, Wayfarer Studios. She also named communications crisis manager Melissa Nathan of The Agency Group PR and Baldoni's publicist, Jennifer Abel.

In the complaint, Lively said Baldoni and his team created a "multi-tiered plan" using "social manipulation" to "destroy" her reputation.

"This plan went well beyond standard crisis PR. What Ms. Nathan proposed included a practice known as 'Astroturfing,' which has been defined as 'the practice of publishing opinions or comments on the internet, in the media, etc. that appear to come from ordinary members of the public but actually come from a particular company or political group,'" according to the complaint.

The complaint says that Baldoni and his team discussed controversies around Swift and Bieber as strategic suggestions while conspiring against Lively.

Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, said Lively's complaint was a "desperate attempt to 'fix' her negative reputation."

Baldoni and his team considered leveraging backlash around Swift and the 'weaponization of feminism,' the complaint says

Nathan's communications company shared a "Scenario Planning" document with Baldoni and others that outlined potential strategies "should [Ms. Lively] and her team make her grievances public," the complaint says.

The complaint includes a copy of that document, which Lively's attorneys obtained through a civil subpoena.

The planning document discussed what Baldoni's team could do if Lively's husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, publicly defended her against critics. It included a reference to Swift, who is a friend of Lively. The pair have attended Kansas City Chiefs football games together and have been photographed by paparazzi while hanging out.

"As part of this, our team can also explore planting stories about the weaponization of feminism and how people in BL's circle, like Taylor Swift, have been accused of utilizing these tactics to 'bully' into getting what they want," the planning document says, according to the complaint.

The complaint says Baldoni used a social media post about Bieber and bullying as an example strategy

Lively's complaint also contained screenshots of text message conversations between Baldoni and his team, which were also obtained through a civil subpoena. According to the complaint, Baldoni sent a text message to his publicist, Abel, in early August.

"A few days later, on August 5, 2024, Mr. Baldoni set the narrative for the social media campaign, sending Ms. Abel a screenshot of a thread on X that had accused another female celebrity of bullying women," the complaint said. "Mr. Baldoni stated, 'this is what we would need.'"

The social media post included two pictures of Bieber and insinuated she had bullied other women. That narrative gained traction on social media in 2023 and resulted in widespread backlash against Bieber.

A representative for Lively referred Business Insider to a statement she shared with The New York Times.

"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.

Lively also said neither she nor her representatives planted negative stories about Baldoni or Wayfarer Studios.

Baldoni's attorney said the accusations in Lively's complaint were "completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media."

Representatives for Bieber and Swift did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

• Colleen Hoover has thrown her support behind Blake Lively after Lively filed a lawsuit against her costar Justin Baldoni.
• The "It Ends With Us" author said Lively had been "nothing but honest" since they first met.
• Lively sued Baldoni for sexual harassment. Baldoni's attorney said the claims were "categorically false."

Colleen Hoover, the bestselling author of "It Ends with Us," has thrown her support behind Blake Lively after Lively sued her costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment, retaliation, and coordinating attempts to damage her reputation.

In an Instagram Stories post, Hoover linked out to a New York Times report on the situation and wrote: "@blakelively, you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met."

"Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt," she added, possibly referencing Lively's character Lily Bloom's profession as a florist.

In the complaint, obtained by Business Insider, Lively said she had attended a meeting with Baldoni — who also directed the movie adaptation of Hoover's novel — and producer Jamey Heath during filming to address the "hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the Film."

The meeting is said to have resulted in all parties agreeing to a number of stipulations, including "no more showing nude videos or images of women, including the producer's wife," to Lively or her employees.

It also required "no more mention of Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath's previous 'pornography addiction' or BL's lack of pornography consumption to BL or to other crew members," the complaint said.

The suit goes on to accuse Baldoni and his team of running a smear campaign against Lively.

Lively faced backlash during the film's promotional tour, with many social media users criticizing her lighthearted marketing approach. Baldoni, on the other hand, received praise for highlighting the serious topics raised in the movie.

Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and his company, Wayfarer Studios, said in a statement that the claims made in the complaint were "categorically false" and "intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media."

"It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to 'fix' her negative reputation, which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions," the statement said.

Reports in Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter said Baldoni has been dropped by his agency, WME, following Lively's complaint.

Business Insider has contacted Freedman and Wayfarer Studios for comment.

• Blake Lively has sued "It Ends with Us" costar and director Justin Baldoni for sexual harassment.
• The 40-year-old actor and filmmaker is best known for his role on the show "Jane the Virgin."
• Baldoni cofounded Wayfarer Entertainment, the production studio behind "It Ends with Us."

Blake Lively on Saturday filed suit against her "It Ends with Us" costar and director, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment after months of reports that the two feuded on set.

Here's what we know about the 40-year-old actor and filmmaker.

The son of Sharon and Sam Baldoni, Justin Baldoni was born in 1984 in Los Angeles and raised in Medford, Oregon. His mother is a Feng Shui designer, according to her Instagram, and his father, before taking on a producer role for his son's projects, including "My Last Days" and "Clouds," was chairman and CEO of Baldoni Entertainment, an entertainment marketing firm.

Baldoni is a devout follower of the Baháʼí faith and has, on several occasions, shared social media posts related to his belief in the religion.

After getting his acting start in a 2004 episode of the soap opera "The Young and the Restless," the younger Baldoni went on to take roles on "Heroes," "The Bold and the Beautiful," and developed a male empowerment talk show called "Man Enough."

Baldoni married Swedish actor Emily Foxler in 2013. She now goes by the name Emily Baldoni in her credits on film and TV projects such as "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." and "NCIS: Los Angeles." She also appeared in "It Ends With Us" alongside her husband and Lively, portraying Doctor Julie.

Baldoni and his wife both have credits on the satirical telenovela "Jane the Virgin," the television show in which Baldoni is best known for his role as Rafael Solano during its 2014-2019 run.

According to the company's LinkedIn page, Baldoni co-founded the production studio Wayfarer Entertainment in 2013, which later produced "It Ends With Us."

The "It Ends With Us" production, based on the novel of the same name by Colleen Hoover, was plagued with rumors that Lively and Baldoni had developed a feud while on set. Business Insider reported that Baldoni had been largely absent from press events with other cast members, and the pair were not photographed together during the film's premiere.

Lively faced significant backlash amid the rumored feud, with fans turning on the "Gossip Girl" star and suggesting she was unlikeable and difficult to work with, Business Insider reported.

In her lawsuit, Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment, retaliation, and breach of contract, saying the actor inflicted "emotional distress" and conspired to damage her public reputation in the wake of the film's release. Baldoni's attorney has called the claims made in the complaint "completely false" and "intentionally salacious."

• "It Ends with Us" star Blake Lively filed a legal complaint against Justin Baldoni, her costar and the film's director.
• Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment, retaliation, and attempting to damage her reputation.
• Baldoni's attorney said the claims made in Lively's lawsuit were "completely false" and "intentionally salacious."

"It Ends with Us" star Blake Lively has filed a legal complaint against the film's director and her costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment.

Lively and Baldoni dominated entertainment headlines this summer as they promoted "It Ends with Us," a romantic drama based on Colleen Hoover's book. However, much of the attention shifted from the film's premiere to the tension between Lively and Baldoni. Fans online said they noticed the pair's strain during the press tour. By the press tour's end, Lively was navigating a negative backlash.

Lively, who produced the film alongside Baldoni's Wayfarer Studios, played Lily Bloom. Baldoni played Ryle Kincaid and directed the film.

Lively's complaint said Baldoni engaged in sexual harassment, retaliation, breach of contract, inflicted "emotional distress," and conspired to damage her public reputation. It named six other defendants, including Wayfarer Studios CEO Jamey Heath and cofounder Steve Sarowitz. Crisis communications professional Melissa Nathan, publicist Jennifer Abel, and a Texas-based contractor named Jed Wallace were also named.

"Ms. Lively never sought out conflict with Wayfarer, Ms. Baldoni, or Mr. Heath, but instead consistently attempted to speak up for a safe and respectful workplace privately in the hopes of protecting herself, as well as the cast and crew, without jeopardizing a film that she believed could make a difference in people's lives," the complaint says. "In response, Mr. Baldoni, Mr. Heath, and those working for them, sought to destroy Ms. Lively and anyone else who knew the truth."

Here's a breakdown of the five biggest bombshells in Lively's complaint.

At an 'all hands' meeting, Baldoni and others agreed to address the 'hostile work environment'

The complaint says she attended an "all hands" meeting with Baldoni, Heath, and others in January to discuss the "hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the film." Her husband, Ryan Reynolds, also attended the meeting.

"Ms. Lively was forced to address concerns about Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath's misconduct with them directly and began doing so months before filming began," the complaint says. "The concerns she raised were not only for herself but for the other female cast and crew, some of whom had also spoken up."

The meeting resulted in a list of behaviors that Baldoni and Heath agreed to stop, including "showing nude videos or images of women, including the producer's wife, to BL and/or her employees."

Other behaviors the men agreed to cease were mentioning their "previous pornography addiction or BL's lack of pornography consumption" and "descriptions of their genitalia," according to the complaint.

The agreed-upon behaviors were compiled into a document that was shared with Wayfarer Studios, which said it found "most of them not only reasonable but also essential for the benefit of all parties involved," according to the complaint.

Baldoni added 'graphic content' to the film without Lively's knowledge, the complaint says

Baldoni added improvised sexual content and nude scenes to "It Ends with Us" in "highly unsettling ways," the complaint says, including an on-camera orgasm, without Lively's knowledge or consent.

"When Ms. Lively objected to these additions, Mr. Baldoni insisted he had added them because he was making the film 'through the female gaze,'" according to the complaint. "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."

"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," the complaint says.

The complaint also says Baldoni urged Lively to "simulate full nudity" while filming a scene in which her character gives birth, saying it's "not normal" for women to wear their hospital gowns while giving birth. Although Lively disagreed, the complaint says she compromised and agreed to be nude from below the chest down.

Neither Baldoni nor Heath closed the set before filming the scene, according to the complaint, allowing "non-essential crew to pass through while Ms. Lively was mostly nude with her legs spread wide in stirrups and only a small piece of fabric covering her genitalia."

Heath also showed Lively and her assistant a video of his wife giving birth that Lively initially believed was pornography, the complaint says.

"Ms. Lively was alarmed and asked Mr. Heath if his wife knew he was sharing the video, to which he replied, 'She isn't weird about this stuff,' as if Ms. Lively was weird for not welcoming it," the complaint said.

Lively said Baldoni 'abruptly' shifted away from their agreed-upon marketing strategy

In the complaint, Lively said she and other cast members promoted "It Ends with Us" according to a "Marketing Plan" created by the film's distributor, Sony Pictures Entertainment. That plan encouraged the cast to emphasize her character's "strength and resilience as opposed to describing the film as a story about domestic violence" to avoid talking points that could make the film "feel sad."

Lively said that Baldoni "abruptly pivoted away" from the plan, promoting the domestic violence storyline of the film and what the complaint described as "survivor content."

Consumers criticized Lively's marketing approach during the press tour, which resulted in social media backlash toward her and her brands. Baldoni did not experience the same disapproval from audiences.

"What the public did not know was that Mr. Baldoni and his team did so in an effort to explain why many of the Film's cast and crew had unfollowed Mr. Baldoni on social media and were not appearing with him in public," the complaint said.

Baldoni and his team engaged in 'social manipulation' to 'destroy' her reputation, the complaint says

In the complaint, Lively said Baldoni's decision to switch marketing strategies was the start of a "multi-tiered plan" using "social manipulation" to ultimately "destroy" her public reputation.

Baldoni hired Melissa Nathan, a crisis communications specialist from The Agency Group PR, on July 31 at the suggestion of his publicist, Jennifer Abel.

"What Ms. Nathan proposed included a practice known as 'Astroturfing,' which has been defined as 'the practice of publishing opinions or comments on the internet, in the media, etc. that appear to come from ordinary members of the public but actually come from a particular company or political group," the complaint said.

The complaint includes screenshots of text messages that Lively's attorneys say are between Abel and Nathan. In one, Abel tells Nathan that Baldoni "wants to feel like she can be buried," in a reference to Lively.

In another one, Baldoni sent Abel a screenshot of a social media post about Hailey Bieber facing bullying allegations in 2023.

"This is what we would need," Baldoni wrote in the text message, according to the complaint.

Baldoni and his team would "feed pieces of this manufactured content to unwitting reporters, making content go viral in order to influence public opinion and thereby cause an organic pile-on," the complaint says.

In the following weeks, news outlets published numerous stories about the "backlash" Lively faced from fans online during the film's press tour.

"To safeguard against the risk of Ms. Lively ever revealing the truth about Mr. Baldoni, the Baldoni-Wayfarer team created, planted, amplified, and boosted content designed to eviscerate Ms. Lively's credibility," the complaint said.

Baldoni retaliated against Lively to protect his image as a 'feminist ally,' the complaint says

Baldoni was "desperate to suppress any suggestion that he engaged in inappropriate conduct, much less sexually harassing conduct, because it would entirely undermine his carefully curated public image as a feminist ally," the complaint says.

The document referenced a 2018 TED Talk Baldoni gave entitled "Why I'm Done Being 'Man Enough" and other similar content.

"In sum, Mr. Baldoni has crafted a public image of himself as not just an ally, but also a fierce advocate for women," the complaint says. "Contrary to this image, as set forth in detail above, Mr. Baldoni has spent the last several months and significant resources on his goal of wanting to 'bury' and 'destroy' Ms. Lively for raising concerns about his and his CEO's harassing behavior and other disturbing conduct."

Lively says she hopes her actions help expose the 'sinister' tactics used to keep people quiet

Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, said the complaint's claims were "categorically false."

"It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to 'fix' her negative reputation, which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions," the statement read.

Freedman's statement called the Lively's claims "completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media."

The statement said Wayfarer Studios chose to hire Nathan before the film's marketing campaign "due to the multiple demands and threats made by Ms. Lively during production which included her threatening to not show up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release, if her demands were not met."

Lively shared a statement with The New York Times, saying, "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."

Lively told the outlet that neither she nor her representatives ever spread negative information about Baldoni or Wayfarer Studios.

• Blake Lively has sued her 'It Ends with Us' costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment.
• Lively said Baldoni, who also directed the film, tried to damage her reputation.
• Baldoni's attorney told BI that Lively sued him to "fix her negative reputation."

Blake Lively is suing her "It Ends with Us" costar, Justin Baldoni, for sexual harassment, retaliation, and coordinating attempts to damage her reputation.

The hype around "It Ends with Us" was intense ahead of the film's August release, but much of the attention focused on the working relationship between its stars, Lively and Baldoni.

Lively played Lily Bloom, and Baldoni played Ryle Kincaid. Baldoni also directed the film, and his company, Wayfarer Studios, produced it.

Lively said in the legal complaint, obtained by Business Insider, that she attended an "all hands" meeting with Baldoni and "It Ends with Us" producer Jamey Heath during filming to address the "hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the Film." Lively's husband, Ryan Reynolds, also attended the meeting.

"Ms. Lively was forced to address concerns about Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath's misconduct with them directly, and began doing so months before filming began," according to Lively's complanit. "The concerns she raised were not only for herself, but for the other female cast and crew, some of whom had also spoken up."

The meeting ended with all parties agreeing to a code of conduct for on-set behavior, including "no more showing nude videos or images of women, including the producer's wife," to Lively or her employees. The agreement also required "no more mention of Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath's previous 'pornography addiction' or BL's lack of pornography consumption to BL or to other crew members."

Lively says in the complaint that another issue arose between her and Baldoni after filming due to differing marketing strategies. Lively adhered to a "marketing plan" that focused on her character's "strength and resilience as opposed to describing the film as a story about domestic violence."

Baldoni, however, "abruptly" switched marketing strategies before the film and focused on the domestic violence aspect, according to the complaint.

During the film's press tour, social media users criticized Lively's lighthearted marketing approach, which led to a wave of backlash. In contrast, fans sided with Baldoni's approach and he emerged relatively unscathed by the fallout.

Lively said in the complaint that Baldoni and his team engaged in "social manipulation" to "destroy" her reputation through a "sophisticated press and digital plan in retaliation for Ms. Lively exercising her legally protected right to speak up about their misconduct on the set, with the additional objective of intimidating her and anyone else from revealing in public what actually occurred."

The complaint included a series of text messages, including some between Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan. Abel is a publicist who worked with Baldoni. Nathan is a crisis communications specialist for The Agency Group PR LLC, which Baldoni retained in early August.

In one message shared with Business Insider by a representative for Lively, Abel wrote to Nathan that Baldoni "wants to feel like she can be buried," referring to Lively.

Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, said in a statement that claims made in Lively's complaint were "categorically false."

"It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to 'fix' her negative reputation, which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions," the statement said.

The statement added: "These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media."

Freedman's statement said Wayfarer Studios decided to hire Nathan before the film's marketing campaign "due to the multiple demands and threats made by Ms. Lively during production which included her threatening to not show up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release, if her demands were not met."

A representative for Lively referred BI to a statement shared with The New York Times on Saturday.

"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," the statement said.

She also told the outlet that neither she nor her representatives ever spread negative stories about Baldoni or Wayfarer Studios.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

• Ryan Reynolds is facing backlash for saying that Blake Lively had a working-class background.
• Lively's parents worked in the entertainment industry, and her four siblings are actors, too.
• Being relatable can help a celebrity's appeal, but an inauthentic approach can quickly backfire, a PR expert said.

Ryan Reynolds has come under fire for saying that he and his wife, Blake Lively, grew up with working-class backgrounds.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published last week, the "Deadpool" star spoke about his and Lively's decision to keep their four kids out of the spotlight "to give them as normal a life as possible."

"I try not to impose upon them the difference in their childhood to my childhood or my wife's childhood," Reynolds told The Hollywood Reporter.

"We both grew up very working class, and I remember when they were very young, I used to say or think, like, 'Oh God, I would never have had a gift like this when I was a kid,' or, 'I never would've had this luxury of getting takeout,' or whatever. Then I realized that that's not really their bag of rocks to carry," Reynolds continued.

His comment about Lively's upbringing has drawn the ire of some fans because her parents had entertainment careers.

Her father, Ernie Lively, was an actor and producer with a Hollywood career spanning almost five decades, per his IMDB page. His acting credits include the 1989 comedy film "Turner & Hooch" and the 1992 action thriller "Passenger 57."

He also played Lively's onscreen father in the 2005 film "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" and its 2008 sequel.

Her mother, Elaine Lively, was a talent manager who also appeared in the 1993 video game "Return to Zork," per her IMDB page.

All four of Lively's siblings are actors, per People.

In a 2006 interview with Radio Free, Lively said that she had "grown up on sets." Moreover, her brother, Eric got her into showbiz when she was a teenager, she added.

"He [told] his agents, 'You have to start sending Blake out on auditions.' And I didn't want to make him mad because he's such a good brother, so I just went on auditions to appease him. And then after a few months of auditioning, I got 'Sisterhood,'" Lively said.

Some internet users posted their displeasure with Reynolds' remarks in the comments section of an Instagram post by New York Magazine's The Cut.

"More and more I'm learning that rich people say 'working class' when they mean 'had a salary,'" one commenter wrote.

"You keep using that word, 'working class.' I do not think it means what you think it means," another wrote.

Reynolds' upbringing in Vancouver was seemingly more modest than that of his wife.

His father, James Reynolds, worked as a police officer and then as a food broker, per People. His mother, Tammy Reynolds, was a retail store saleswoman, per Reynolds' IMDB page.

Why do celebrities try to claim working-class affiliations?

Reynolds and Lively are still dealing with backlash from "It Ends with Us," which could explain why they're trying to lean into relatability as a strategy, Megan Balyk, a vice president at public relations firm Jive PR + Digital, told Business Insider.

"In today's world where authenticity is key, a working-class background can make a celebrity seem more genuine. Plus, it can help deflect criticism about privilege or nepotism," Balyk said.

But an inauthentic approach can backfire.

Social media has made it easy for fans to fact-check claims, and they're quick to call out any inconsistencies, she said.

"If a celebrity's claims seem false or exaggerated, it can lead to backlash, as we saw not too long ago with Victoria Beckham when she said she grew up 'working class' in the Beckham documentary, despite her father owning a Rolls-Royce," Balyk said.

There's also a risk of trivializing the struggles of people from disadvantaged backgrounds, she said.

Balyk said the backlash in Reynolds' case could be because people are becoming more aware of nepotism in Hollywood.

"There's a growing fatigue with celebrities who seem to downplay their privileges," she said.

"A better strategy would be to openly acknowledge their current position while showing genuine appreciation for any advantages they've had. It's better to be honest about your background than to overstate past hardships," she added.

A representative for Reynolds did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by BI outside regular hours.