On Monday, the first court hearing in the public back-and-forth between It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni took place in New York. The result? Judge Lewis J. Liman threatened that if both sides continued to litigate the matter in the press, he’d move their March 2026 trial date up. Just what we all need in these exceedingly unprecedented times! Lively and Baldoni weren’t present for the conference, but Liman warned their attorneys to avoid involving the public so as not to prejudice any future proceedings.
Meanwhile, Lively’s attorney Michael Gottlieb called the “retaliation campaign” allegedly conducted by Baldoni’s team “devastating” for his client. “You’re not supposed to launch attacks on the other party’s character,” he said. Gottlieb added that he plans to file an amended complaint prior to February 14 that includes new claims and additional defendants.
Ahead of Monday’s conference, Lively and Ryan Reynolds moved to dismiss Baldoni’s case and Freedman finally debuted that website he’s been threatening to launch for weeks. TMZ reported on the site’s arrival on Saturday, which contains Baldoni’s 224-page complaint against both Lively and Reynolds and a 168-page “timeline of relevant events.” Included in the “relevant events” are a mass of text messages, emails, and other communications that appear to be between Baldoni and the couple (from their first meeting until the bitter end). Exchanges between Baldoni and his publicists, studio execs, and others involved in the production of It Ends With Us are also included.
But most of the communications have already been reported on—from Lively likening herself to Khaleesi to Baldoni’s apologies (via text and a 2 a.m. voice note) to Lively for alleged infractions like a disappointing response to her edits to the now-infamous rooftop scene. However, there is some new context in the form of text messages and notations that refute some of Lively’s most incendiary claims.
An example? Lively introduced Baldoni to her trainer and friend before production began in February 2023. According to the timeline—and when the working rapport between Lively and Baldoni still appeared, at the very least, civil and, at most, downright congenial—Baldoni ended up collaborating with the trainer on an exercise plan for the film. In an exchange with Lively around this time, she appears to joke about needing to lose 20 pounds; Baldoni “disliked” the text. Weeks later, Lively expressed concern about how her body would appear on screen.
“As woke as we both are and work to be, this movie requires a certain aesthetic,” she wrote. Baldoni appeared to disagree, reassuring her that she “will look amazing” and needn’t “stress about her body.”
In March 2023, Lively wrote to Baldoni that she had strep throat. In response, he appeared to offer his holistic health coach who he said had “amazing gut health protocols that help after antibiotics.” The next month, she wrote that she’d fallen ill again. This time, Baldoni offered his health “intuitive” to help. You might remember that according to Lively’s complaint, these people weren’t a “health coach” or “intuitive” but weight loss specialists that she claimed were Baldoni’s way of fat-shaming her.
In April, Baldoni claimed that, because he has back issues, he was worried about a scene in which he was supposed to lift Lively. In preparation, he asked the trainer how to properly train his back to accommodate Lively’s weight. Days later, Baldoni claims to have been invited to Lively and Reynolds’ penthouse where Reynolds accused him of fat-shaming his wife.
“How dare you fucking ask about my wife’s weight? What’s wrong with you?” Baldoni claims he screamed. Months prior, in February, Reynolds and Baldoni appeared to send each other lengthy text messages that appeared friendly. In the timeline document, Baldoni claims to have apologized for the misunderstanding and they were able to proceed. Later that month, Lively and Baldoni were apparently on such comfortable terms that she offered to fly him from New York (where the film’s pre-production was taking place) to California to see his wife and children. On the flight, according to the provided texts, they planned to work on the script together.
As the timeline continues, their working relationship soured, according to Baldoni. In his version of events, Lively became increasingly power-hungry and controlling in her demands. He and Wayfarer, according to the timeline, complied—in part, out of fear that she wouldn’t promote the film, thereby jeopardizing the work of countless people. It all culminates in the only thing we can be absolutely certain of: a very clear divide and two competing explanations as to why.
I won’t posture on who’s in the right here yet (read the documents for yourself), but the precedent a move like this website will set in Trump-era litigations certainly gives me pause. Here’s hoping Lively and Baldoni’s camps will keep this to a courtroom from here on out.
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