A federal judge in Manhattan has dismissed a $400 million lawsuit filed by actor and filmmaker Justin Baldoni against Blake Lively, his co-star in the 2024 film It Ends With Us.
The judge’s decision, issued Monday, marks a major development in the public legal battle between two of Hollywood’s most recognisable names. Baldoni had accused Lively of defamation and extortion after she publicly alleged he sexually harassed her during production of the film.
“This is a total victory and a complete vindication for Blake Lively,” her lawyers said in a statement. “The judge’s ruling confirms that Baldoni’s claims had no legal basis.”
The lawsuit came in response to Lively’s own legal complaint, filed in December 2024. In it, she claimed Baldoni and his company, Wayfarer Studios, had harassed her on set and then launched a campaign to discredit her after she raised concerns. Lively later expanded on her claims in a New York Times interview.
Baldoni hit back with a countersuit in early 2025, targeting not just Lively, but also her husband Ryan Reynolds, her publicist Leslie Sloane, and The New York Times, which published the original report.
But US District Judge Lewis Liman dismissed all of Baldoni’s major claims, stating that his legal arguments failed to hold up in court.
“Wayfarer Parties have not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible bargaining,” Judge Liman wrote in his 57-page ruling.
He also found that Lively’s statements in her lawsuit were legally protected and could not be used as grounds for defamation. Regarding the article in The New York Times, the judge said there was no evidence of “actual malice,” the legal standard required for public figures to win a defamation case.
“The Times reviewed the evidence and reported, perhaps in a dramatized manner, what it believed had occurred,” Liman noted. “It had no clear reason to favour Lively’s side.”
On social media, Lively responded with a message that struck a personal tone.
“Like so many others, I’ve felt the pain of a retaliatory lawsuit,” she wrote on Instagram. “This suit was defeated, but so many people don’t have the resources to fight back. I stand with every woman’s right to speak out.”
Baldoni’s team has yet to publicly respond. The court has allowed him the option to amend and resubmit a narrower claim related to interference with business contracts, but he must do so by 23 June.
Meanwhile, two of Lively’s own claims — for emotional distress — were voluntarily withdrawn last week. She had originally alleged severe mental anguish resulting from the alleged harassment and public backlash.
The legal drama has cast a shadow over It Ends With Us, a film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel. The movie, which follows a woman trying to break the cycle of domestic abuse, was supposed to be a star vehicle for Lively and a major production for Baldoni’s company.
Instead, it has become the centre of one of the industry’s most closely watched legal disputes in recent memory.
With the judge’s ruling, attention now shifts to whether Baldoni will attempt to continue the fight — or let it end here.
