Apparently, Justin Baldoni is getting ready to file a counter-lawsuit following Blake Lively’s December 20 legal complaint against him. In her 80-page complaint, the actress accused her It Ends With Us costar and director of sexual harassment and participating in a smear campaign against her. Bryan Freedman, Justin’s lawyer, told People in a statement that Blake’s allegations are “false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt.”
After The New York Times report about Blake’s allegations, Justin was dropped by prominent talent agency WME, his women’s solidarity award was rescinded (why is that even a thing?), his Man Enough podcast host, Liz Plank, announced she’s quitting the show, and his former publicist is now suing him. Not to mention, several It Ends With Us cast members and other celebrities have made it clear that they’re on Blake’s side.
Per a new Daily Mail report, Justin, Wayfarer Studios CEO Jamey Heath, and the publicists listed in Blake’s complaint are preparing to file their counter-lawsuit on January 2 when courts reopen after New Year’s.
Here’s a breakdown of Justin Baldoni’s alleged counter-lawsuit against Blake Lively.
Justin Baldoni’s Claims In His Counter-Lawsuit Against Blake Lively
According to the Daily Mail report, Justin and his team will claim in their counter-suit that it was Blake’s PR team who engaged in a smear campaign against Justin. They will also claim that those damning texts between his publicist and his PR crisis manager were ~taken out of context~ and presented in a way that that’s misleading. (IDK, I’m not sure what context would miraculously make those look not evil.) Additionally, Justin’s team is reportedly prepared to accuse Blake’s publicist of planting negative stories about Justin, and they’ll argue that Blake’s legal complaint is just a strategy to repair her image after the It Ends With Us press tour damaged her reputation.
What Justin Baldoni’s Lawyer Has Said About The Counter-Lawsuit Against Blake Lively
On December 28, Justin’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, didn’t confirm or deny a counter-lawsuit in a statement to Deadline. “I am not going to speak to when or how many lawsuits we are filing but when we file our first lawsuit, it is going to shock everyone who has been manipulated into believing a demonstrably false narrative,” he told the outlet. “It will be supported by real evidence and tell the true story. In over 30 years of practicing, I have never seen this level of unethical behavior intentionally fueled through media manipulation. It reminds me of what NBC tried to do to Megyn Kelly and Gabrielle Union and we all know how that ended up. Standby.”
Blake’s publicist, Leslie Sloane, gave her own statement to Deadline about the rumored looming countersuit. Leslie claims that on August 11, Sara Nathan, an editor at The New York Post, sent her “an anonymous tip that Page Six received, regarding allegations of HR complaints on the set of It Ends with Us.” (It’s notable that Sara is the sister of Melissa Nathan, Justin’s crisis PR manager, so Justin’s team had this media connection.)
“After that, I was contacted by various press outlets asking about allegations of HR complaints,” she continued. “When contacted, I responded to press questions by referring them to Wayfarer or Sony for information regarding HR complaints.”
Leslie concluded: “It’s clear that Mr. Baldoni and his Wayfarer Associates are suggesting that I originated press stories about HR complaints on set, which is false. Please read Ms. Lively’s Complaint and the Complaint filed by Jonesworks LLC and Stephanie Jones, which provides the details of the campaign against my client.”
Welp, we’ll have to wait and see what happens on January 2…
