Justin Baldoni sues 'NYT' for $250M over 'manipulative' Lively article
What's the story
Justin Baldoni filed a $250 million lawsuit against The New York Times (NYT) after the publication of an article that accused him of leading a smear campaign against his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively.
Baldoni and nine other plaintiffs, including his production company, Wayfarer Studios, filed the 87-page complaint on Tuesday (US local time).
They have accused NYT of libel, false light invasion of privacy, promissory fraud, and breach of implied-in-fact contract.
Accusations
Plaintiffs accused 'NYT' of using misleading information
To note, the lawsuit was filed in response to an article in the NYT titled, We Can Bury Anyone: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine, published on December 21.
The plaintiffs, including Baldoni and It Ends With Us producers Jamey Heath and Steve Sarowitz, accused the publication of using "cherry-picked" and "altered communications" stripped of necessary context and "deliberately spliced" to mislead in the article.
Defense and refutation
'NYT' left out important context
The complaint stated that the article's central thesis is that the plaintiffs orchestrated a retaliatory public relations campaign against Lively for speaking out about sexual harassment—a premise that is apparently "categorically false" and easily disproven.
To refute these claims, Baldoni's complaint provided several examples of allegedly out-of-context statements made by NYT.
For example, the NYT article alleged that Baldoni barged into Lively's makeup trailer uninvited while she was undressed, even when she was breastfeeding.
Evidence
Baldoni's complaint provided evidence to counter claims
However, Baldoni's complaint included alleged texts from Lively that said, "I'm just pumping in my trailer if you wanna work out our lines."
Baldoni replied, "Copy. Eating with crew and will head that way," which the lawsuit argues proves he didn't barge in.
The article portrayed Lively as an actor who allegedly endured months of sexual harassment from Baldoni. However, the lawsuit counters this narrative, alleging that Lively orchestrated a "strategic and manipulative" smear campaign of her own.
Defense strategy
'NYT' plans to 'vigorously' defend against Baldoni's lawsuit
In a statement to PEOPLE, a NYT spokesperson said they intend to "vigorously" defend against Baldoni's lawsuit.
"The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead," the Times spokesperson said. "Our story was meticulously and responsibly reported."
"It was based on a review of thousands of pages of original documents, including the text messages and emails that we quote accurately and at length in the article."
Harassment allegations
Lively's complaint against Baldoni detailed sexual harassment allegations
Filed on December 21, Lively's 80-page complaint contained allegations that Baldoni sexually harassed her and created a retaliatory public smear campaign against her.
The Gossip Girl actor alleged that she was caused "grief, fear, trauma, and extreme anxiety" due to Baldoni's alleged behavior.
This behavior included showing her explicit images and videos, asking her about her personal sex life, and trying to add intimate scenes to the film that she hadn't originally agreed to.