The substantial $400 million lawsuit filed by actor and director Justin Baldoni against his former co-star Blake Lively has been officially dismissed by a US judge. The dismissal comes after Baldoni failed to meet a critical deadline to continue his legal claim.
Baldoni and Lively, who both starred in the 2024 film “It Ends With Us,” have been embroiled in a contentious legal dispute since December of last year. At that time, Lively filed her own lawsuit against Baldoni, alleging sexual harassment and a campaign to damage her reputation.
In a counter-move, Baldoni initiated a lawsuit that included Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, their publicist, and The New York Times. His claims encompassed allegations of civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy.
Baldoni’s initial case was dismissed in June. However, he was granted the opportunity to submit an amended complaint. Unfortunately for Baldoni, Judge Lewis Liman noted that this amended complaint was never filed.
The judge had informed all parties involved on October 17th that a final judgment would be entered to close the case. Lively was the only party to respond, requesting that the final judgment be declared while also seeking to keep her claim for legal fees active, a request the judge granted.
Lively’s original lawsuit against Baldoni remains active. Following the June dismissal of Baldoni’s case, Lively’s legal team declared it a “total victory and a complete vindication.” Conversely, Baldoni’s lawyer at the time refuted this, stating it was a “false” declaration and that they intended to proceed with additional evidence and refined allegations on four out of the seven claims against Lively, which the court had permitted them to amend. However, these amendments were not submitted, leading to the current dismissal. Neither Baldoni nor his company, Wayfarer, have issued a comment on the recent ruling.