Blake Lively Addresses Unfathomably Painful Justin Baldoni Lawsuit

Blake Lively has responded to a legal ruling that dismissed the majority of her claims in an ongoing lawsuit against Justin Baldoni, the director and co-star of It Ends with Us.

On April 2, 2026, a judge dismissed 10 of the 13 claims filed by the 38-year-old actress-producer against Baldoni. The dismissed claims included those relating to sexual harassment.

Despite the dismissals, the court ruled that Lively’s claims involving a retaliatory smear campaign will proceed to trial.

Lively addressed the developments in a statement posted to her Instagram Stories on April 3, 2026. In the post, she shared a statement from her attorney, Michael Gottlieb, reacting to the Thursday dismissal of the majority of her claims.

I am grateful for the Court’s ruling which allows the heart of my case to be presented to a jury next month, and for the ability to finally tell my story in full at trial, for my own sake, but also for those who don’t have the same opportunity to … many of whom I have known and loved deeply in my life, and the countless I’ll never know

Blake Lively

Lively stated that she initiated the legal action because of the pervasive RETALIATION she faced after privately and professionally requesting a safe working environment for herself and others.

In her statement, the actress also discussed the impact of digital violence, describing the associated physical pain as abuse that is present in communities and schools, affecting women and children.

Lively expressed a commitment to continue fighting to expose the systems and people who seek to harm, shame, silence and retaliate against victims.

Previous Legal Context

The Instagram post included a dragon emoji, which may be a reference to a previous legal dispute between the two parties. In a countersuit filed by Baldoni in January 2025, it was alleged that Lively sent texts comparing herself to the Game of Thrones character Khaleesi.

Those alleged texts reportedly referred to Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, and her friend, Taylor Swift, as her dragons.

Baldoni’s January 2025 countersuit, which included allegations of defamation and extortion, was dismissed in June 2025 after his legal team chose not to refile amended versions of the claims.