Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds Issue Gag Order For Justin Baldoni’s Legal Team Following Footage Release

Blake Lively at the “It Ends With Us” New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on August 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images)

Another day, another update on the legal saga between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. Hot off the heels of behind-the-scenes footage from It Ends With Us being shared by Baldoni as a means of defending his co-star’s allegations, Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, have reportedly submitted a formal request aimed at silencing Baldoni’s lawyer from discussing the case publicly.

Lively and Reynolds, who have been married since 2012, have filed a letter to Judge Lewis J. Liman on January 21, 2025, requesting a gag order for the director’s primary lawyer, Bryan Freedman, according to E! News.

The letter, citing “improper conduct” on Freedman’s part, follows the release of raw footage from the It Ends With Us set. The clips, which feature Lively and Baldoni filming a rooftop scene, were shared by Baldoni’s lawyers in a controversial move that has added fuel to the fire.

However, Lively’s team responded to the released footage, describing it as “condemning” for Baldoni.

“Justin Baldoni and his lawyer may hope that this latest stunt will get ahead of the damaging evidence against him, but the video itself is damning,” the actress’ lawyers told Page Six. “The video shows Mr Baldoni repeatedly leaning in toward Ms Lively, attempting to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smells, and talking with her out of character… Every moment of this was improvised by Mr Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance, and no intimacy coordinator present. Mr Baldoni was not only Ms Lively’s co-star, but the director, the head of the studio and Ms Lively’s boss.”

JERSEY CITY, NJ – JANUARY 12: Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively are seen on the set of ‘It Ends with Us’ on January 12, 2024 in Jersey City, New Jersey. (Photo by Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

Lively’s legal team has since accused Freedman of putting her on blast “virtually every day”, alleging that since the filing of her Civil Rights Complaint on December 21, 2024, Freedman has “given television interviews, appeared on podcasts, issued inflammatory written statements, and leaked information (including, remarkably, documents as banal as document preservation demands to third parties) to the Hollywood press and tabloid media.”

The letter further alleges that Freedman’s statements “not only continue the campaign of retaliation that was the subject of Ms. Lively’s First Cease and Desist, but they contain numerous new false statements about Ms. Lively and others.”

The gag order request is the latest development in the ongoing dispute that kicked off when the film was released in August 2024. The legal battle began in December 2024, when Lively’s civil complaint was first outlined in The New York Times, which described a formal lawsuit filed on December 31, 2024, against Baldoni and others, alleging mental pain, lost wages, anguish, and sexual harassment.

In response, Baldoni has launched his own legal fights against The New York Times on defamation grounds and has filed as well as a $644 million suit against Lively, Reynolds, and their publicist for defamation, contract violations, and civil extortion.

As the legal proceedings continue with no end in sight, fans and media have been monitoring the situation closely.