Blake Lively’s lawyers claim Justin Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit “does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail”

Justin Baldoni; Blake Lively.Credit : Dia Dipasupil/Getty; UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTSOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK; Kevin Mazur/WireImage

Justin Baldoni is firing back with allegations of his own in the heated legal battle with Blake Lively.

After months of speculation of a rift behind the scenes of their hit film It Ends With Us, Lively, 37, came forward with allegations of sexual harassment and a retaliatory smear campaign when she filed a complaint in December.

Baldoni, 40, then sued The New York Times for $250 million over its coverage of the complaint, and he followed up on that by directly suing Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and their publicist — for $400 million in damages — in a filing that landed Thursday, Jan. 16.

About the lawsuit, which alleged extortion and defamation, Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman said it is based on “an overwhelming amount of untampered evidence” and suggested “this is a battle [Lively] will not win and will certainly regret.” They allege in Baldoni’s complaint that Lively and Reynolds went on a mission to “destroy” Baldoni’s reputation and career after “hijacking” the film.

The actress’ lawyers responded with a statement of their own, calling the “meritless” lawsuit “another chapter in the abuser playbook.” They added, in part, “The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, it does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail.”

Read on for some of the biggest bombshell claims featured within Baldoni’s 179-page complaint.

A Complete Breakdown of Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s Feud: A Look at the Lawsuits, Allegations and Key Players

Blake Lively on Aug. 8, 2024.Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images

Blake Lively Allegedly Didn’t Read the Book, Causing Creative Clashes

It Ends With Us is based on a 2016 bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover that Baldoni optioned the rights to make a movie from in 2019. He claims Lively chose not to read the book while making the adaptation, which allegedly “worried colleagues” who felt “her wrongheaded creative decisions reflected her fundamental lack of understanding of the book,” the complaint claims. (The complaint goes further to claim she “even tried to Google the color of her character’s hair rather than pick up the book.”)

In an April 2024 statement to PEOPLE, Lively spoke about fans’ love for the novel and character, Lily Bloom. “Lily resonated with an enormous amount of people, as the success of the book made clear. Stepping into a character who’s had such a meaningful impact is an honor to take on,” she said at the time. “I loved Lily. And I hope that love is felt by those who care about her like I do, and also those who are getting to know her for the first time in this film.”

Lively said in an alleged text message to Baldoni in April 2023 that she was “deeply inspired by the film we’re gonna make outside of the success of this book. We have such an opportunity to not only surprise people who love the book, but reach an even bigger audience by making an undeniably dynamic and also commercial film.”

Blake Lively Is ‘Ready to Tackle Whatever Comes Her Way’ After Suing Justin Baldoni (Exclusive Source)

Justin Baldoni; Blake Lively; Ryan Reynolds; Taylor Swift.John Nacion/Variety via Getty; Taylor Hill/FilmMagic; Kevin Mazur/Getty; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

Taylor Swift and Ryan Reynolds Allegedly Pressured Justin Baldoni

Baldoni’s complaint claims Lively began “asserting” control over the film, “inserting herself into the production process in intrusive ways.” His complaint describes Lively as “difficult” and claims her “interference would persist ‘every day of the shoot’ and disrupt” the schedule.

Lively even enlisted husband Reynolds and best friend Taylor Swift to back her vision for the film and “pressure” Baldoni into deferring to her, his complaint alleges. In an alleged text, Lively compared herself to the Game of Thrones character Khaleesi and said Reynolds and Swift are her “dragons” who support her. They are “embarrassingly effusive,” she allegedly wrote of the two, also calling them her “stage moms.”

Writes Baldoni’s legal team in his complaint: “Baldoni was not just dealing with Lively. He was also facing Lively’s ‘dragons,’ two of the most influential and wealthy celebrities in the world, who were not afraid to make things very difficult for him.”