Justin Baldoni’s 400-million-dollar lawsuit against his former co-star Blake Lively has been formally ended by a judge, who said the actor and director had failed to meet a deadline to continue his claim.
The pair, who starred in the 2024 film It Ends with Us, have been embroiled in a bitter legal battle since Lively sued Baldoni last December accusing him of sexual harassment and of orchestrating a smear campaign against her.
In response, he filed a counter lawsuit against her as well as her husband Ryan Reynolds and their publicist and the New York Times, claiming civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy.
Baldoni’s case was dismissed in June, but he had a chance to file an amended complaint but Judge Lewis Liman said he had failed to do.
The judge said he had contacted all of the parties on October 17 to give them warning that he would enter a final judgement to conclude the case.
Only Lively responded, asking for the final judgement to be declared, but for her request for legal fees to remain active and the judge agreed. Her original lawsuit against Baldoni is also ongoing.
After Baldoni’s case was dismissed in June, the actress’s lawyers called it “a total victory and a complete vindication.”
At the time, Baldoni’s lawyer said Lively’s “predictable declaration of victory is false,” and that “with the facts on our side, we march forward.”
He added: “While the court dismissed the defamation related claims, the court has invited us to amend four out of the seven claims against Ms Lively, which will showcase additional evidence and refined allegations.”
However, those amended claims were not filed, according to the latest ruling.
