Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds are sued by Justin Baldoni for $400 million.

With actor-director Justin Baldoni suing co-star Blake Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, their publicist Leslie Sloane, and Sloane’s PR business, Vision PR, for $400 million, the drama behind the scenes of It Ends With Us has intensified once more.

The lawsuit claims attempts to seize possession of the much awaited film and was filed in the Southern District of New York on Thursday, January 16.

Along with publicists Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan, as well as producer Jamey Heath, Baldoni accuses the defendants of defamation, civil extortion, invasion of privacy, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and interference with contractual and economic relationships, according to PEOPLE.

The Lawyer for Baldoni Speaks Out

 

In a scathing statement, Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman accused Lively and her group of purposeful deceit.

“This lawsuit is a legal action based on an overwhelming amount of untampered evidence detailing Blake Lively and her team’s duplicitous attempt to destroy Justin Baldoni, his team, and their respective companies by disseminating grossly edited, unsubstantiated, new, and doctored information to the media,” Freedman stated.

“This is a struggle she will not win and will definitely regret,” the lawyer went on, adding, “because of our own complete willingness to produce all comprehensive text messages, emails, video footage, and other documented evidence that was communicated between the parties in real time.

“Blake Lively was either severely misled by her team or intentionally and knowingly misrepresented the truth.”

Freedman also accused Lively and her colleagues of manipulating the media and harming reputations for “heinously selfish reasons” before filing a lawsuit.

“We know the truth, and now the public does too,” he stated. “Justin and his team have nothing to hide, documents do not lie.”

Rebuttals and Prior Accusations

 

The claim comes after Lively filed her first lawsuit on December 20th, alleging that Baldoni’s actions throughout the creation and promotion of It Ends With Us left her feeling “grief, fear, trauma, and extreme anxiety.”

She claimed that Baldoni had coordinated a retaliatory slander campaign and that she had been sexually harassed on the film’s shoot. Making frequent remarks about her postpartum figure and inquiring about her sexual life with husband Ryan Reynolds were among the accusations.

According to her lawsuit, a conference was held to discuss the allegations and resolve problems before filming could start again, and attendees included Lively, Baldoni, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and other important players in the picture.

In an interview with NBC News on January 2, Freedman alluded to the ongoing legal action by saying: “We want the truth to be out there. We want people to see the documents. We want receipts to be the basis for people’s decisions.

Additionally, this most recent case follows Baldoni’s December 31 libel complaint against The New York Times.

The paper’s piece “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine” examined Lively’s claims, and Baldoni accused the publication of utilizing “cherry-picked” and manipulated correspondence.

The New York Times responded to the piece by claiming that it was “meticulously and responsibly reported.”

Lively was cited as saying: “I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted.”

Representatives for Sloane, Reynolds, and Lively have not yet responded to the countersuit as of this writing.