Justin Baldoni Unveils New Evidence In Amended Lawsuit, Releases Timeline On Dedicated Website

In moving to amend his lawsuit, Baldoni has consolidated his lawsuits against The Times and his lawsuit against Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Lively’s publicist Leslie Sloane, and her PR company, Vision PR. Baldoni’s team has also made good on their promise to release a long-promised website, where they intended to release comprehensive text and documentary evidence to establish Baldoni’s innocence. The website contains two PDFs so far—one linking to an amended lawsuit, and the other to a timeline of relevant events.

Baldoni's attorney Bryan Freedman said the decision to amend the lawsuit was “a logical next step due to the overwhelming amount of new proof that has come to light. This fresh evidence corroborates what we knew all along,” he continued, “that due to purely egotistical reasons, Ms. Lively and her entire team colluded for months to destroy reputations through a complex web of lies, false accusations and the manipulation of illicitly received communications.” 

Freedman also pointed to the online discourse surrounding the case, stating that it has “ironically shed light on the undeniable facts pertaining to The New York Times and how heavily Ms. Lively and her representatives were not only deeply involved in the attempted takedown and smear campaign of Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and their teams, but that they themselves initiated it.”

Dispute Over The New York Times Metadata

A contentious debate between internet sleuths and The Times over metadata has been so influential that the info has resulted in Baldoni amending his lawsuit against The Times to include their findings. Baldoni's lawyers point to dates on images, PDFS, and other files—some as early as December 10 and 16, 2024, or even October 31, 2024 in the HTML source code—as evidence that the Times had the complaint long before publication. 

The New York Times maintains that they did not have advanced access to Lively’s CRD complaint when they published her filing accompanied by a damning hit piece against Justin Baldoni just one day after her complaint was filed. The New York Times put out a statement, commenting "Mr. Baldoni's lawyers base their erroneous claim on postings by amateur internet sleuths, who, not surprisingly, are wrong." The Times claims that the sleuths noted a version of Lively's CRD complaint published by The Times as carrying a date of December 10—ten days before the complaint was filed. The problem with that theory, The Times says, is that the date is generated by Google software and is unrelated to the date when the Times received and posted it. 

The Times did not address the HTML source code in the message-embed-generator which refers to a date of October 31, 2024. Baldoni's amended lawsuit posits, "of course, it may be the case that the New York Times just happened to load a new tool for embedding text messages within an article as part of routine system upgrades, only to stumble six weeks later upon the perfect opportunity to show off this new graphic tool in an article that relied heavily upon cherry-picked and misleadingly reframed text messages."

Baldoni's amended lawsuit argues that “the significance of the timing of these elements of the defamatory article is that they strip away the legal shields that Lively, the Times, and the other Lively Parties were likely relying on to protect their malicious acts of defamation, such as the litigation privilege and the fair reporting privilege.”

Ryan Reynolds Banters With Justin Baldoni About “Tattooing His Perineum” But Then Things Turn Hostile

New text messages between Justin Baldoni and Ryan Reynolds were provided in Baldoni’s Relevant Timeline of Events PDF and easily accessible on his website, “Lawsuit Info.” The texts provide new insight into the early relationship between the two creatives. Baldoni reached out to Reynolds early on in a bid for friendship, "Emily (Baldoni's wife) and I have a very small circle- we live out in the country in Ojai and pretty much just hang out with each other. We've known all our closest friends for years and I don't really have any close female friends that my wife isn't also friends with- let alone married ones. And so I gues this is just an awkward text to say I'd like to be friends. (I’m happy there’s no check yes or no box.)" Baldoni mentioned that Lively had sent the "sweetest message" to his wife unprompted which made him "respect her and [Reynold's] union" even more. 

Both men shared their admiration of one another and expressed excitement about Baldoni and Lively’s collaboration. Reynolds told Baldoni he's "been a wonderful collaborator with B [Blake] and that means a great deal — to both of us." He added, "Being a stand up person is everything. And you've been just that since day one. Thank you.” Reynolds then shifted to talk about the creative aspect of the filming, suggesting that he hit the jackpot with Lively and "having her in your court behind the scenes, as a creative, is invaluable. I'm sure [redacted] would say the same. Some of the greatest creative decision "I've" made are in fact Blake." He continues, "The acting is a small piece of a pretty astounding patchwork quilt of creativity. More than anything I rely on her taste. Far beyond movies, I really [sic] on her taste for all aspects of my businesses. That multidimensional creative output is something I can see in BOTH of you.” 

This text seemingly foreshadows the couple’s intention for Lively to be more heavily involved in the creative process. Baldoni has maintained that Lively requested a producer credit which was denied during contract negotiations, as she was not expected to contribute outside of her role as an actress and executive producer. He indicated that offering an executive producer credit to an actress of her stature is typical practice and a way to honor someone of her calibre’s talent.

Reynolds also impressed upon Baldoni how important it was for himself and Lively to remain together in texts, "Thank you for understanding what it means to me personally to have my family reunited as soon as possible. Nothing means more to her either I can promise you. We're hardwired for keeping our family together. It's how to win us, and also how to kill us when we can't. We never split up. Ever. It was a huge thing for us on this film." He continues, "All this to say. I'd have your line producer's face tattooed to my perineum if he/she/they can figure out how to start two weeks earlier. Completely understand how big of an ask that is. But the perineum is one of the most nervy parts of the human body to expose to trauma.” Here, we see a glimpse of Reynold’s humor shining through, but also a real intention for Lively to be heavily involved in the creative process and a desperation for Baldoni to make accommodations for them to be together. The texts show Baldoni’s nervousness and apparent intimidation of the star power behind the couple, admitting he had retrieved Reynolds’ number from Lively well over a month earlier and had wanted to text him, but his nerves got the best of him. The texts show a seemingly amicable relationship between the two early on, but Reynolds didn’t shy away from asking the shoot to be moved around to accommodate the couple.

New Texts Between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively

Several new text conversations between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively were provided for context surrounding certain contested narratives. Additional text exchanges between Lively and Baldoni during a discussion about the pivotal rooftop meet-cute scene reveal Lively requesting to revise the dialogue, aiming to infuse more of her voice into the character to make it “flirty and yummy.” In the text dated April 8, Lively writes, "If you knew me (in person) longer, you'd have a sense of how flirty and yummy the ball busting would play. It’s my love language. Spicy and playfully bold, never with teeth. And him serving it back to her is just as important. You don’t usually see both the man AND the woman with such agency and humor. Anyway, I can act it out for you next week to make sure it comes through. Or I can send now. Lemme know what you prefer. Xx.” The message has sparked debate online, with some interpreting it as a subtle attempt to flirt with Baldoni. Others have speculated that a perceived tension between the two could have been the motive for Ryan Reynolds to get involved, due to jealousy.

Lively had claimed in her CRD complaint that Baldoni fat shamed her and routinely found backchannel ways of criticizing her body and weight, including secretly calling her fitness trainer without her knowledge or permission to imply that she needed to lose weight in two weeks. Baldoni has argued that he only inquired about her weight for the safety of both he and Lively performing a lifting scene due to his back issue arising from multiple bulging discs, but Lively’s complaint asserts that no such scene exists. 

Baldoni reiterated that Lively and Reynolds were the ones who forced him to remove the scene from the script after being allegedly being berated by Reynolds on April 25, 2023, at their New York penthouse for “fat shaming” Lively. Baldoni claims they gave him an ultimatum: remove the scene or you have two weeks to re-cast the role. Baldoni provided new photos in his Timeline of Relevant Events which reveal a scene in the screenplay where Ryle “scoops her up.”

An earlier text exchange between Baldoni and Lively on February 9, 2023 shows Lively joking about needing to lose 20 more pounds to reach her goal weight. Baldoni's response was to dislike the message. Then, on February 14, Baldoni begins writing and sending script revisions to Lively in an attempt to build rapport. He texts, "Been deep into writing, really fun with you in mind" then follows up with "Fun not right word, exciting," Lively responds to tell him "you're safe here" as if to indicate he can speak freely without policing his words. In response to Lively's inquiry about whether they can do body scenes at the end of the schedule, Baldoni responds on February 17, 2023, "I want you to know- you will look amazing. Anything you are insecure about we will talk through and get creative together and make you comfortable. I just don't want you to stress about your body. It's the last thing you need."

Lively’s response was to express appreciation for Baldoni's voice memo and to praise him for being everything he promised to be as a collaborator. "As woke as we both are and work to be, this movie requires a certain aesthetic. It's a part of the job that we both excitedly signed up for. I don't shy away from it because it's not problematic. It's the assignment. Like when someone is about to start an athletic event. It's their job to be in top shape,” Lively said. 

Baldoni claims Lively offered for him to fly with her to Los Angeles and back for the weekend just two days after Reynolds had reportedly berated him at their home for “fat shaming” Lively. Baldoni described how he was feeling homesick and claims Lively proposed that he fly with her from New York to Los Angeles so he can see his family when they reach Los Angeles and they can work on the script together while in the air. Texts between himself and producer Jamey Heath on April 27 show Baldoni saying, "Blake just offered to fly me to LA with them tomorrow at 2pm so we could get 6 hours of work on the script in, and then fly back sunday and get another 6." Later on, he texted "I'm with Blake.” Baldoni noted that Lively felt at ease with him and was “not only willing but invited him to share an airplane cabin with her and her children.” Per the timeline, Baldoni flew with Lively and her children to Los Angeles on April 28 and they returned to New York together on April 30.

A new text exchange has been revealed from Lively after Baldoni was reportedly ambushed by Lively's celebrity friends at her home to subtly suggest that Baldoni should incorporate her script changes to a rooftop scene in the film. Baldoni sends a voice note addressing Lively’s past negative experiences with filmmakers who didn’t value her contributions and a follow-up message praising her contributions. Lively thanks Baldoni for his thoughtful messages and replies on April 15, 2023, "I too promise I'll freak you out, spook you, upset you, and be an actual beast. But I can promise it will always be in service of this movie our shared goal. But will also always apologize. I appreciate being able to communicate openly always. Xx"

On the set of It Ends With Us, Lively reportedly fell ill numerous times. In an attempt to establish good will, Baldoni offered to connect Lively with a health expert he kept on retainer to help her recover from strep throat. Baldoni offered to send her some "amazing gut health protocols that help after antibiotics" which Lively welcomed, responding "Please." Baldoni then connected Lively with his Board-Certified Integrative Holistic Health Coach, who Lively described as "incredible." Baldoni provides text exchanges between himself and Lively as well as the wellness coach. All texts are strictly centered around helping Lively recover from various health problems after she expressed interest in their help.

In the first exchange on March 29, Baldoni asks if the wellness coach can recommend a probiotic gut rebuilder. On April 13, Lively contacts Baldoni to inform him she is ill for the third time in one month. Baldoni asks if she'd like to speak to his health coach who he previously connected her with on March 29, but offers a step further to connect her with his medical intuitive, as Lively had indicated her condition was "perplexing" all of her doctors. Baldoni said the medical intuitive is who doctors call when they can't figure out patients, but warns she "might be too woo woo" for Lively. This didn't deter Lively, who responded, "Never too woo woo for me. I'm open to it all." He follows up with Lively to let her know the medical intuitive needs her to fill out forms that were sent to her before she can help. Lively then affirms she signed them and are in touch. In Lively's CRD complaint, Lively claimed the health coach was "not what Mr. Baldoni had represented her to be," claiming she was really a weight-loss specialist. Both instances were cited as subtle attempts to shame Lively for her body and weight.

Photos of Intimacy Coordinator Notes

Lively has alluded to the lack of an intimacy coordinator’s involvement on It Ends With Us by listing multiple grievances in her 17-point Protections for Return for Production document, emphasizing the need for an intimacy coordinator’s presence. She accused Baldoni of inappropriately improvising intimate scenes and inserting gratuitous sexual content without her consent or knowledge. Her allegations included claims that he added graphic content requiring her character to orgasm on camera, last-minute simulation of full nudity for a birthing scene despite no mention of it in the script or contract, and a scene depicting younger Lily losing her virginity.

Baldoni, however, has maintained that he hired an intimacy coordinator before filming began and insisted on choosing a woman to ensure the scenes were crafted from the “female gaze.” He also emphasized that both the intimacy coordinator and Lively were meant to play a key role in shaping the film’s intimate scenes. Texts included in Baldoni’s previous lawsuits show that Lively declined to meet with the intimacy coordinator before filming, leading Baldoni to worry it would disrupt workflow. He claimed her resistance forced him to attend the meetings alone, take notes, and later relay them to Lively in separate script meetings at her New York penthouse. Baldoni has now provided photo evidence proclaiming to be notes from these meetings with the intimacy coordinator. His journal is dated April 21 (2023) and includes jotted down phrases like “goes down on her,” “orgasm,” “foreplay,” and “the clit test.”

On May 5, 2023, the record shows Baldoni emailed the intimacy coordinator his notes on sex scenes after he claims he discussed Lively's comfort level with her. The email contains a list of instructions for how the sex scenes will be shot and what they will contain. He uses verbiage such as "only flattering ones Blake is comfortable with" and mentions that scenes should have "no nipple," "no orgasm," "no oral sex" and makes mention of shooting it from the point of view of the female gaze. He also comments "If Blake is comfortable showing Ryle kissing her belly and then leaving frame for a moment and then staying on her face I think thats something women would like to see but also fine not doing it as I know oral sex was something off limits but wasn't sure about implied oral sex. Discussing a scene in Vegas, Baldoni says "The goal is to choreograph in a way that keeps Blake's clothes on as much as possible." He describes another intimacy scene as being “more about sensuality than sex.” The final scene listed in these notes is labeled "Onesies make out" which he describes as "less about seeing bodies and sex, more about onesies coming off." He adds, "I'm fine if Blake wants to just take mine off and we make it playful."

Baldoni claims that May 8 is the date Lively was provided with an intimacy-coordinator-approved Nudity Rider which served as confirmation that Lively and the intimacy coordinator discussed and mutually approved the sex scenes. Baldoni attaches emails sent between Wayfarer and Lively's counsel documenting this. An email reportedly from the intimacy coordinator reads, "I've looked through this and the depiction of the sex scenes is exactly as discussed with the actors so that section is ready to go." Baldoni's timeline also claims that sex scenes which were originally scheduled for the week of May 8, 2023 had to be rescheduled multiple times due to illness and strikes. These scenes ended up not being filmed until January 2024, so Baldoni claims no sex scenes were shot during Phase 1.

Email From Line Producer Complains Wardrobe Budget Ballooned

On April 25, 2023, the Line Producer on the film shared concerns about the ballooning wardrobe budget, because they had "already spent $615k" (this was reportedly 430k over budget) and had only shopped for Justin’s and Blake’s characters. Baldoni had previously claimed that Lively took over wardrobe, forcing the costume designer to reshop her entire look. The email mentioned "they had to reshop everything for Blake after creative changes, but it's a lot of money" and mentioned "this is way more than I've ever seen wardrobe go over budget with the initial spend."

Per Baldoni’s Timeline, Things Begin to Shift

Baldoni notes in the provided timeline that on May 1, 2023, Lively begins altering the script daily and the frequency of her revisions and input alarms the producers, who anticipate that her interference would persist "every day of the shoot." Below this point on the timeline is a text between a producer and Jamey Heath. The producer says in back-to-back messages, "are you listening to this," "she's fixing the script," "I think [redacted] advice was actually wrong," "Blake is now directing the movie," "This is bad." Heath responds, "I'm listening. Talking through it is better than not. Seeing what's possible. As long as any decision is done with approval." The producer counters, "not for something that was already intimately planned," "this will be every day of the shoot." Heath notes he's "not sure what can be done honestly. at this point in terms of Blake."

By May 3, Lively and Baldoni purportedly continued to text "almost daily" and Lively was clearly comfortable making crass jokes about her "suppositories." Two days later, Baldoni reportedly holds a “Respect in the Workplace” meeting, as is standard protocol for pre-production and employee training. Below this timeline point is a document of the film’s daily prep schedule, which notes a meeting scheduled for 12 P.M. on May 5, 2023 titled Respect in the Workplace Meeting (Via Zoom). 

On May 16, Baldoni (per his timeline) met with Lively in her trailer to discuss necessary wardrobe adjustments after leaked paparazzi photos garnered public backlash over Lily Bloom’s look not living up to expectations. Lively later characterized this meeting in her CRD complaint as a "lengthy outburst" that delayed filming and caused the crew to wait for hours while Baldoni cried in Lively's dressing room. Baldoni claims that the meeting was professional and he was merely relaying Sony’s concerns, but that he did become briefly emotional in response to a compliment paid to him by Lively over his work. A text on May 16 from Baldoni to Heath says, “Seeing her in ten. Send me prayers - I’m just saying I’ve been ignoring my gut and there's a few things we need to course correct on. I'm fucking terrified of saying the wrong thing. Talk after.” A Daily Wrap Email attached to the timeline recorded the meeting as lasting 1.5 hours and states the nature of the meeting was to discuss Lively's wardrobe and looks in the film.

Texts show Lively messaging Baldoni, "Hey I think we should have a conversation with [redacted] [redacted], Jamey today," and "I would like to have a conservation with [redacted], [redacted], Jamey today. All of us." Baldoni claims they agreed to meet after filming and came to her makeup trailer, where Heath knocked before being invited in. Per Lively’s complaint she had claimed she was topless and getting body makeup removed when Heath barged in and made eye contact with her. Baldoni also contests the notion she was topless, claiming that she remained fully covered while she was breastfeeding or pumping. Lively claimed this meeting was about inappropriate behavior on set, but per Baldoni's Relevant Timeline of Events he argues, "As this timeline shows, the allegedly ‘inappropriate behavior’ Lively describes in her Complaint had not yet occurred, and the conversation concerned only wardrobe and production." For perspective, the timeline puts Lively texting Baldoni that he wanted her character's look to be "sexier" as just one day after this meeting. Lively later accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her for inappropriately calling her sexy.

Baldoni also brought some receipts in the form of script writes and call sheets that call into question Lively’s accusation that there wasn’t a closed set during a birthing scene. The call sheet for the scene lists it as a closed set. Baldoni also provided lines from the screenplay that counter Lively’s accusations that kisses were being inappropriately improvised and were not in the script. Lively accused Baldoni of discreetly biting and sucking on Lively's lower lip during a scene in which he improvised numerous kisses on each take. The script however, says "Ryle grabbing Lily around the waist and kissing her."

Baldoni Presents Evidence That Alleges Reynolds & Lively Dictated Marketing Efforts That Drew Criticism

To make this back-and-forth even more convoluted, Baldoni claims that contrary to Lively's claim that she was merely adhering to the Marketing Plan circulated by Sony and "agreed to by all" was actually not agreed to by all. He claims it was just a list of talking points and was not a binding contract. He also asserts that his plan to highlight survivors of domestic violence was made clear from the beginning, way back when he negotiated that it was a dealbreaker provision for 1% of the film's proceeds to be donated to the organization No More to support survivors of domestic abuse. 

Furthermore, he claims that Ryan Reynolds' production company Maximum Effort was hired by Sony to produce promotional content for the film and that Sony attested to the fact Max Effort was "running the show." Baldoni cites a content shoot scheduled for June 27-28, 2024 that Lively reportedly coordinated with Max Effort without Sony's knowledge — a shoot that excluded Baldoni's presence. Emails are attached between Jennifer Abel and Sony, showing Abel inquiring about the shoot and asking why Baldoni isn't involved, "Can we be connected to maximum effort? Who are they exactly? WE cannot have some cast doing content and the rest not being included, we will need to find another way for JB to participate in this and we need Sony support here." A representative from Sony responded, "For the content, Blake and Maximum Effort are really running the show. We know it's Thursday and Friday, but Blake has been talking to talent and Maximum Effort is leading the planning. I'm not flying out for it either!"

The content shoot reportedly organized by Maximum Effort takes place on June 28, 2024, and involves the cast making flower arrangements, baking cookies, playing Pictionary, collage making, and other concepts developed by the Maximum Effort team in support of the films' promotion. On July 2, 2024, during a Zoom call between Wayfarer and Sony Marketing, Wayfarer reportedly learned that Sony had faced extensive revisions to the marketing plan due to the content shoot. Sony had hired Ryan Reynolds’ company, Maximum Effort, to produce the promotional material, which significantly increased costs beyond the original budget—despite Lively previously telling Baldoni that Maximum Effort would work for free. 

In text messages provided by Baldoni, Lively says "Max Effort is on board to help as much or as little as you want" and that all is led by herself and Ryan "so we'll make sure to weed out any lame ideas." When Baldoni says he's going to push to hire Max Effort, Lively says "They don't need to hire," "It's me and Ryan and [redacted] We work for free for the family." Lively adds the joke, "It's mafia style on this." Baldoni claims that though Wayfarer approved this, Sony was not given direct access to the footage they had paid for and reportedly had minimal involvement in shaping the shoot. An email from Wayfarer Marketing provides a summary of the marketing activities, "the creative team has been dealing with extensive revisions based on feedback from Blake." The email also said, "Ryan's agency, Maximum Effort, is producing content, some of which will roll out on his handle. There was a shoot with three creators and the rest of the cast; Sony did not have much opportunity to be involved."

Baldoni also provides multiple pieces of evidence that suggest he repeatedly reached out to suggest that Lively and the cast need to bring more attention to the domestic violence aspect of the film rather than focusing on lighthearted framing, including an email from Jamey Heath to Sony Marketing on August 9, 2024, the day of the film's domestic release, urging them to take the topic of domestic violence more seriously. In the email, Heath says, "I'd like for us to take a look at, that even in the midst of "feuding", how many people are pointing out that the DV is being glossed over and that Justin is essentially the only one appreciating the subject matter whilst other may not be giving it the proper respect that it deserves." He adds, "As you know, this has always been a concern of our s and I think we might agree that there is enough response to at least consider giving it a bit more thought." Heath suggests it "won't hurt the movie by being more deliberate in embracing the DV aspect. People need to know that we too recognize the gravity and the sensitivities of this subject."

Justin Baldoni Provides Drafted Statement He Says Ryan Reynolds Tried to Force Him to Release to Take the Fall for Negative PR

After what Baldoni describes as “organic” articles describing Blake Lively as tone deaf pop up online in early August, William Morris Agency (WME), Jennifer Abel, and Jamey Heath discuss a conversation between WME and Ryan Reynolds. Per legal documents, WME reportedly communicated to Wayfarer and Baldoni that Lively and Reynolds were furious for putting them in the position of promoting the film as a "Barbie film" while Baldoni took on its more serious messaging. Reynolds and Lively reportedly suspect Melissa Nathan is responsible for this positioning and demand that Wayfarer release a statement taking full accountability for the negative press toward Lively and Reynolds. Baldoni claims that WME was warned that failure to publish the statement would mean the gloves were coming off. 

Jamey Heath reportedly consistently communicated that neither Wayfarer, Nathan, nor anyone on their team was behind the negative press nor were they manipulating narratives on social media with bots. Reynolds allegedly personally drafted a statement for Wayfarer to release immediately. According to Baldoni's Timeline of Relevant Events, "Upon review, WME concurs with Wayfarer that the statement was vague, implies culpability without substance, and fails to address the issues at hand." Wayfarer, Baldoni, and Heath reportedly refuse to release the statement. Baldoni has provided the document in his timeline, which is labeled as a “statement prepared by Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds on behalf of Baldoni, Heath and Wayfarer.” 

The statement makes mention of It Ends With Us being a "troubled production" that Wayfarer "take[s] full accountability for" before offering an apology for causing upset privately and publicly. The statement praises Blake Lively and Colleen Hoover, as well as the entire cast and crew who "led with professionalism every step of the way" and asserts any negativity aimed at them is "ours to own." It goes on, "We mutually agreed that the cast would be promoting the film separately and understood why," before making reference to Baldoni's famous "man enough" philosophy. "We hold ourselves accountable, it's not anyone's job but ours and that's part of being 'man enough.'"

Baldoni Claims Lively Misrepresented Personal Anecdote About Being Taken Advantage of Sexually and Flipped It Around

Baldoni claims that Lively misrepresented a personal story he shared about his own experience of being taken advantage of sexually by his girlfriend at the time. In a text conversation with Melissa Nathan, she pays him a compliment in the way he depicts abuse in the film, sharing that it was better than she expected. "The way abuse was shown initially to the reality I've never seen in a film before and I keep thinking about it," Nathan said. She mentions that it would be good to emphasize this message of the film — "why and how abuse can mask itself into ways the abused often doesn't realize." In response, Baldoni explains he designed it this way because that's what happened to him. 

"When I was 20, I lost my virginity to my emotionally abusive girlfriend in a nonconsensual way, and when I was 35 I started remembering." Baldoni added that the memories are a struggle for him to not think it was his fault or what he wanted. Baldoni explained that he was trying to depict the memories coming into being in a way that wasn't in the book, but influenced by his personal experiences. However, Baldoni claims this anecdote of being a victim of non-consensual sex was held against him and flipped to make him sound like the one who didn't get consent. "Ironically, when I told that to Blake, that was one of the things that she put in her list against me lol," Baldoni says, to which Nathan expresses her disbelief in that story being held against him. 

In Lively's CRD complaint, she claims Baldoni recounted his experience of being allegedly sexually abused by a former girlfriend during a car ride with her assistant and driver in tow. However, she adds that during this conversation, he said this experience caused him to reexamine his past and question whether he always asked for consent. Her complaint quotes him as saying, "Did I always ask for consent? No. Did I always listen when they said no? No." She claims Baldoni cited this as an example of how we all have things from which we can learn and grow. The conversation reportedly unsettled Lively and upon exiting the car, she claims her driver remarked that he did not want her to be alone with Baldoni going forward. 

Baldoni claims Lively misrepresented the story to suggest Bladoni engaged in sexual conduct without consent. His Timeline of Relevant Events states, "In fact, it was the other way around. Baldoni was referencing an intimate relationship in which he was the one who did not give consent, not the other way around." It’s unclear which version is the truth. With so many encounters being chalked up to he-said/she-said framing, external witnesses may become a huge component to this trial. Other present parties may be able to corroborate whether or not things went down exactly as they have been framed by either Lively or Baldoni.

On February 3, Lively and Baldoni’s legal teams appeared before a Judge in a pretrial court hearing. Lively’s attorney requested a gag order be placed on Bryan Freedman to prevent him from prejudicing a jury pool, but the request was denied. Presiding Judge Lewis Liman did warn both legal teams however, that they would need to refrain from making public statements that could prejudice the case and adhere to professional conduct rule 3.6, otherwise the marked March 26, 2026 trial date may need to be expedited to ensure a fair trial.