Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively settle ‘It Ends With Us’ dispute

MANHATTAN (CN) — The gnarly Hollywood legal dispute between “It Ends with Us” co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni has come to a close after both sides reached a settlement agreement, they announced on Monday.

News of the deal, the terms of which are undisclosed at this time, came just two weeks before the parties were set to duke it out in a federal courtroom. Trial was set to begin May 18 with testimony from Lively, Baldoni and Lively’s husband, fellow A-list actor Ryan Reynolds.

But the parties met for a court-ordered settlement conference last week and, on Monday, rendered the monthlong trial no longer necessary.

“The end product — the movie ‘It Ends With Us’ — is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life,” Lively and Baldoni said in a joint statement. “Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors — and all survivors — is a goal that we stand behind.”

Lively had accused Baldoni of sexual harassment during the production of the 2024 film, based on the 2016 novel by the same name about a young woman navigating an abusive relationship.

“We acknowledge the process presented challenges and recognize concerns raised by Ms. Lively deserved to be heard,” the parties added in Monday’s statement. “We remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments. It is our sincere hope that this brings closure and allows all involved to move forward constructively and in peace, including a respectful environment online.”

The trial was expected to be a bombshell one, with Lively’s sought damages exceeding $100 million. Much of her complaint was gutted last month, however, after a federal judge tossed 10 of 13 causes of action she levied against Baldoni, including sexual harassment, defamation and civil conspiracy.

Lively had accused Baldoni of improvising several kisses on-set and making unwelcome comments about her appearance. She also said Baldoni called her “sexy” and commented on her cleavage.

In another instance, she claimed Baldoni announced to other individuals on the film set that she had never seen pornography — an admission she made to him after he opened up about having a porn addiction.

Baldoni vehemently denied the claims and attributed them to Lively looking to hijack the premiere of the film, which he directed and produced.

Lively went public with her claims against Baldoni via a 2024 interview with the New York Times. Following the story, she says Baldoni engaged in a relentless PR campaign to discredit those accusations by defaming her, pointing specifically to several statements from Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman, who rejected her claims in several interviews with the media.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ruled last month that Lively can’t go forward with her defamation claims. The Donald Trump appointee found the supposed smear campaign to fall under protected speech. Liman also ruled that she lacked standing to bring sexual harassment claims under employment law since she was an independent contractor on the film, not an employee.

The only surviving claims that would have gone to trial later this month would have been retaliation, aiding and abetting retaliation, and breach of contract.

Baldoni countersued Lively and Reynolds in early 2025, seeking $400 million for defamation and civil extortion. He claimed the industry power couple conspired to “destroy” him — and his production company Wayfarer Studios — with the “weaponized” accusations.

He brought a separate defamation suit against The New York Times for a story from December 2024, detailing a “Hollywood smear machine” with text messages between Baldoni and his team of publicists about the Lively accusations.

Liman fully tossed both suits in 2025.

Even pop megastar Taylor Swift, a close friend of Lively, was swept up in the legal war. Baldoni claimed Lively and Reynolds tried wielding Swift’s influence to intimidate him. Several disparaging texts from Swift about Baldoni also made it into the public record, like one in 2024 to Lively in which she called Baldoni a “bitch.”

“It Ends With Us” released on Aug. 9, 2024, and was a box office hit, grossing more than $350 million worldwide.

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