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The Entire Justin Baldoni vs. Blake Lively Feud Explained

The It Ends With Us conflict grew from production and promotional tensions into competing legal claims. Here is what each side alleged, what courts decided and what the 2026 settlement did—and did not—resolve.
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The dispute between It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni began amid tensions around the film and its promotion, then escalated into competing legal claims. Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit was dismissed, Lively’s sexual-harassment claims were dismissed on employment-status grounds, and the remaining retaliation-related claims settled in May 2026 before trial. The settlement did not produce a verdict on every disputed fact, and its financial terms were not disclosed.

What was the feud about?

It Ends With Us, adapted from Colleen Hoover’s novel, opened in theaters on August 9, 2024. Lively starred as Lily Bloom, and Baldoni starred as Ryle Kincaid and directed the film. The story deals with domestic violence and emotional abuse, which also became a point of debate around the film’s promotional campaign.

During promotion, viewers noticed that Lively and Baldoni appeared distant from one another, and some criticized how the press tour addressed the film’s serious subject matter. Those observations and online theories about the cast’s private relationships were not proof of what happened behind the scenes. The legal dispute took shape through allegations about workplace conduct and retaliation, not simply the public speculation around the press tour.

What did Blake Lively allege?

In a complaint to California’s Civil Rights Department filed on December 20, 2024, Lively alleged sexual harassment during filming and a campaign to damage her reputation after she raised concerns. She also described a January 2024 meeting about workplace issues and requested conditions for a safe, professional working environment. These were allegations in her complaint, not findings by a court.

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Alleged conduct on set

Lively alleged unwanted comments and conduct, including boundary issues during a love scene and pressure concerning nudity in a birth scene. Baldoni denied sexually harassing her. The claims were later dismissed on the legal ground that Lively was an independent contractor rather than an employee for purposes of those sexual-harassment claims; that ruling did not decide that the alleged events did or did not occur.

Alleged retaliation

Lively also alleged that Baldoni and associates coordinated public-relations or social-media activity to harm her reputation after she raised workplace concerns. The retaliation-related claims remained after the harassment claims were dismissed, but settled before trial. No trial verdict resolved those allegations.

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What did Justin Baldoni claim in response?

Baldoni denied the harassment and smear-campaign allegations. He argued that Lively’s accusations were false and that she sought creative control of the film while harming his reputation. In January 2025, Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and other plaintiffs sued Lively, Ryan Reynolds and publicist Leslie Sloane, alleging defamation and extortion. The suit sought $400 million; that was the amount demanded, not an award.

Lively’s side rejected Baldoni’s characterization and sought dismissal. The competing accounts appeared in lawsuits, public statements and released materials, but advocacy by either side was not itself a court finding.

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What happened in the legal case?

Date Development What it means
December 20, 2024 Lively filed a complaint with California’s Civil Rights Department alleging harassment and retaliation. The complaint set out her allegations; it was not a judicial finding.
December 31, 2024 Lively filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against Baldoni and others, alleging harassment and retaliation. The dispute moved from a complaint to litigation.
January 2025 Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and others filed their defamation and extortion suit against Lively, Reynolds and Sloane. This was a counter-suit by Baldoni’s side, not a ruling that Lively’s account was false.
June 2025; October 31, 2025 Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit in June. Baldoni did not amend the relevant claims, and final judgment ending that suit was entered October 31. The countersuit ended, but the dismissal was not a jury determination of every disputed event.
April 2026 The judge dismissed Lively’s sexual-harassment claims after finding she was an independent contractor rather than an employee for those claims. Her retaliation claims remained at that stage. The dismissal turned on her legal status for those claims, rather than a trial verdict on the alleged conduct.
May 2026 The parties settled the remaining claims before the scheduled trial. The settlement ended the remaining claims without a trial verdict. The financial terms were not disclosed.

Did Lively and Baldoni settle, and what did the settlement say?

Yes. In May 2026, the parties settled the remaining claims before trial. Their joint statement, as reported by the Associated Press, said: “The parties recognize that Ms. Lively’s concerns deserved to be heard.” It also said: “We remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments.” Neither statement amounts to a court finding about the allegations, and the settlement terms were not made public.

What was the $400,000 award?

In a later 2026 fee ruling, the judge awarded Lively $400,000 toward legal costs connected to defending against Baldoni’s dismissed countersuit, according to the Associated Press. She had sought $8 million in fees; the judge rejected her requests for punitive and multiplied damages. The $400,000 was a legal-cost award, not a settlement payment and not a verdict on the harassment or retaliation allegations.

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What is established—and what was not decided?

The legal record has distinct outcomes: Baldoni’s countersuit ended in dismissal and final judgment; Lively’s sexual-harassment claims were dismissed on employment-status grounds; and the remaining retaliation-related claims settled. A dismissal on those grounds does not establish that the underlying account was true or false, and settlement does not by itself establish liability or an admission. Because the remaining claims settled before trial, a jury did not issue a verdict resolving them.

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