Court-ordered settlement talks in Blake Lively‘s sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit against Justin Baldoni have floundered, and the It Ends With Us co-stars are almost certainly going to trial.
Attempts to reach a deal have proven “unsuccessful,” Baldoni attorney Bryan Freedman said Wednesday, speaking outside Manhattan’s Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse as the first and maybe last day of a settlement conference between the parties concluded.
A jury trial seemed back at the top of the agenda for the media-savvy lawyer, who said he was “looking forward to it” when asked about the May 18-scheduled start date.
Freedman also said that while “there’s always a chance” of a settlement, the litigator noted that he didn’t “know that we will” when it came to resuming talks over any pretrial deal.
Both Lively and Wayfarer Studios co-founder Baldoni exited the courthouse around 4 p.m. ET after a closed-door session with their respective legal teams in front of Magistrate Judge Sarah L. Cave. Today was the first occasion they have been in court at the same time since the Another Simple Favor actress filed a lawsuit that now seeks around $200 million in damages from her IEWU co-star and director and his inner circle.
Besides claims that Baldoni repeatedly harassed Lively on the IEWU set, she also alleges Baldoni had a online smear campaign launched against her in mid-2024. The most 21st century aspect of Lively’s case, the accusation is that Baldoni brought crisis PR types like defendants Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel on board to rip Lively apart before the premiere of the their movie to offset accusations he and his Wayfarer gang were worried she would make against him.
Back on January 22, the lawyers argued for (Baldoni) and against (Lively) in front of Judge Lewis Liman over summary judgment in the high-profile and superstar-littered case. That hearing last month was preceded by a massive document unsealing that revealed multitudes of emails over the matter of what went down on IEWU. Among the spicer parts were a Sony exec calling Lively “a terrorist” over threats to quit the picture, and co-star Jenny Slate calling Baldoni “the biggest clown and the most intense narcissist.”
Of course, the reference to Baldoni as a “bitch” by Taylor Swift, IEWU soundtrack contributor and godmother to one of Lively and Ryan Reynolds‘ kids, landed with the biggest bang.
Still, likely awaiting the Hail Mary results of the settlement attempt he ordered late last year, there has been no decision from Liman on that summary judgment or about any trimming of Lively’s claims.
The Wayfarer side has scheduled a session in court for Thursday over the adjacent case of Jonesworks PR boss Stephanie Jones, the former chief of Abel and Baldoni’s old PR firm. It is not clear if either Lively or Baldoni, who emerged from court with his entourage and a smile on his face today, will be in attendance.
However, when it comes to Lively vs. Baldoni, everybody is expected to be in court in late May in front of Liman and a jury. Everybody.
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni
Nicole Rivelli / Jojo Whilden / Sony Pictures Releasing / courtesy Everett Collection