Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni feud finally enters NYC courtroom

After much than a period successful the tribunal of nationalist opinion, the Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni battle yet entered an existent courtroom Monday successful New York.

Attorneys for some “It Ends With Us” stars appeared successful Manhattan Federal Court earlier Judge Lewis Liman. Even earlier the hearing, Liman said helium expected to harvester Lively’s archetypal $250 cardinal intersexual harassment suit with Baldoni’s $400 cardinal defamation claim.

Lively, 37, and Baldoni, 41, were not successful attendance for the presumption conference. Neither was Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, who is named arsenic a suspect successful Baldoni’s suit on with Lively’s publicist, Leslie Sloane.

Lively claimed that Baldoni, who besides directed “It Ends With Us,” sexually harassed her portion they were filming the movie, which itself chronicles an abusive narration betwixt Lively and Baldoni’s characters. She filed her suit connected Dec. 22 successful California.

Baldoni, who built a marque challenging accepted norms of masculinity and adjacent wrote a publication titled “Man Enough,” denied Lively’s claims and countersued for defamation soon afterward. Baldoni’s suit was filed successful New York and included the New York Times arsenic a defendant, arsenic the insubstantial was the archetypal to people Lively’s allegations.

Following the suits, Lively and Baldoni some engaged successful extended antagonistic publicity campaigns, which reached a caller level connected Saturday erstwhile 1 of Baldoni’s lawyers created an full website to archer his broadside of the story.

As the nationalist feud escalated, Lively requested a gag bid successful the case. Her ineligible squad had besides asked that Baldoni’s astir assertive attorney, Bryan Freedman, beryllium barred from deposing her aboriginal successful the ineligible process.

Lively has additionally accused Baldoni’s PR squad of astroturfing a societal media campaign to marque his communicative the ascendant 1 connected the internet, including crossed TikTok, Reddit and Instagram. Various publicists are besides named arsenic defendants successful some lawsuits.

Monday’s presumption league was moved up from a mid-February day astatine Lively’s request. A proceedings successful the lawsuit is scheduled to begin connected March 9, 2026.