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Justin Baldoni\u2019s legal team implored a federal judge Thursday to dismiss actor Blake Lively\u2019s lawsuit related to their 2024 movie \u201cIt Ends With Us,\u201d arguing that her sexual harassment case concerned nothing more than \u201ctrivial and petty grievances.\u201d
Sigrid McCawley, one of Lively\u2019s lawyers, rejected Baldoni\u2019s lawyers\u2019 premise and insisted the case revolved around \u201cwomen feeling comfortable in their jobs and not being retaliated against.\u201d
Lively, 38, accused Baldoni, 41, and his Wayfarer Studios production company of orchestrating a punitive \u201csmear campaign\u201d after she spoke out about the allegedly toxic work environment he created on the set of \u201cIt Ends With Us.\u201d Baldoni directed the film and starred alongside Lively.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman is now weighing whether the high-profile case, filed in the Southern District of New York, should move forward. He heard arguments from both sides Thursday morning, presiding over an occasionally fiery hearing.
Jonathan Bach, one of Baldoni\u2019s lawyers, argued Lively knowingly agreed to co-star in a movie that would feature \u201chot and sexy scenes\u201d as well as a \u201csteamy and turbulent romance\u201d adapted from the eponymous novel by Colleen Hoover.
Liman interrupted Bach to say that acting in the project \u201cdoes not mean you subject yourself to sexual harassment.\u201d
Esra Hudson, another one of Lively\u2019s lawyers, detailed the actor\u2019s sexual harassment allegations against Baldoni, saying her client was \u201ckissed, nuzzled and touched\u201d without her consent. Baldoni was \u201cconsistently inappropriate\u201d and crossed \u201cboundaries\u201d on set, Hudson argued.
The hearing came after thousands of pages of documents were made public this week, including a filing that includes Lively\u2019s claim that Baldoni pressured her to simulate nudity in a scene depicting her character giving birth.
The documents also include a record of Lively\u2019s text messages with one of her close friends, the pop superstar Taylor Swift, who used an expletive to describe Baldoni.
\u201cI think this bitch knows something is coming because he\u2019s gotten out his tiny violin,\u201d Swift wrote in one text, referring to Baldoni, according to a document filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
Swift\u2019s representatives did not respond to a request for comment this week.
Lively initially filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department on Dec. 20, 2024, accusing Baldoni of sexual harassment and retaliation. She then filed a federal civil lawsuit against him on Dec. 31, 2024.
In late February, she filed an amended complaint against him as well as his company, the firm\u2019s chief executive and other defendants. He filed a countersuit against her seeking $400 million, though a federal judge tossed that case.
Lively\u2019s amended complaint seeks compensatory and punitive damages, but it does not specify a dollar figure. It alleges Baldoni constructed a \u201cmulti-tiered plan\u201d to tarnish her public reputation.
\u201cIt Ends With Us\u201d stars Lively as a flower shop owner who marries a neurosurgeon played by Baldoni. The film chronicles Lively\u2019s character\u2019s experiences with domestic abuse.
Adam Reiss is a reporter and producer for NBC and MSNBC.
Daniel Arkin is a senior reporter at NBC News.
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