A federal judge has dismissed the majority of claims in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Blake Lively against her “It Ends With Us” co-star Justin Baldoni.
Judge Lewis Liman struck out 10 of the 13 allegations, including claims of harassment and defamation, significantly narrowing the scope of the case.
However, three claims — breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting retaliation — remain active and are set to proceed to a civil trial in New York on May 18.
The dispute dates back to 2024, when Lively filed suit against Baldoni, accusing him of harassment and orchestrating a smear campaign during the production of their film. Baldoni denied the allegations and responded with a counter-lawsuit.
Sigrid McCawley, a member of Lively’s legal team, told CBS that the case “has always been and will remain focused on the devastating retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy” the actress’ reputation.
She added that the dismissal of the sexual harassment claims was due to a technical issue, rather than a finding of no wrongdoing.
According to McCawley, Lively is expected to testify at trial and will continue “to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation”.
In a related development, the court previously dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million counterclaim against Lively, which had alleged civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy.
The case centres on events that allegedly took place during the filming of “It Ends With Us,” an adaptation of a best-selling novel by Colleen Hoover. In the film, Lively portrays Lily Bloom, a woman confronting cycles of domestic abuse.
Lively’s legal team has accused Baldoni and his studio, Wayfarer, of attempting to damage her reputation through coordinated efforts, including social media activity and engagement with sympathetic media figures.
Details of the allegations were also outlined in a report by The New York Times prior to the lawsuit being filed.
In her December 2024 filing against Wayfarer Studios, Lively alleged sexual harassment on set and retaliation following her complaints, among other claims.
In his 152-page ruling, Judge Liman cited multiple reasons for dismissing several of the allegations. He noted that harassment claims brought under California law were not applicable, as the alleged incidents occurred in New Jersey.
“None of these acts or occurrences provides the ‘substantial connection’ to California needed to sustain Lively’s sexual harassment claims,” Liman wrote.
The judge also determined that Lively, as an independent contractor rather than an employee, was not eligible to pursue certain harassment and retaliation claims.
Additionally, Lively accused Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, of defamation over public statements made about the case. However, the court ruled that those remarks were tied directly to ongoing legal proceedings and therefore did not meet the threshold for defamation.
“To be sure, much of what Lively complains about is not actionable. The Wayfarer Parties were entitled to engage public relations and crisis management specialists to protect their reputations,” Liman wrote. “However, certain conduct at least arguably crossed the line.”
The judge allowed some retaliation claims to proceed, particularly those alleging a coordinated campaign to undermine Lively’s reputation, finding they warranted further examination at trial.
Shortly after Lively filed her lawsuit, Baldoni launched defamation claims against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, alleging they sought to damage his career and reputation. He also filed claims against The New York Times.
Baldoni further alleged that Lively attempted to take control of the film by threatening not to promote it and by advancing what he described as a false narrative of harassment.
However, in June, Judge Liman dismissed Baldoni’s lawsuit, stating that his legal team had “not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible hard bargaining or renegotiation of working conditions”.
The case has also drawn attention due to evidence including text messages between Lively and Taylor Swift concerning Baldoni.
