Turning Colleen Hoover’s novel It Ends With Us into a movie has involved a ton of controversy from the beginning. Although details are still unknown, there was reportedly ongoing beef between its costars. Now, Blake Lively has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin Baldoni.
Blake portrayed florist Lily Bloom in the film adaptation, while Justin played her love interest, a neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid. For It Ends With Us, both actors starred in and executive produced the film. Justin also served as the director. In addition to clashing about their vision for and marketing of the movie, Blake alleges that Justin’s behavior caused her to suffer severe emotional distress.
More from CafeMom: Blake Lively Apologizes for Kate Middleton Jokes After Cancer Diagnosis
Blake filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin, claiming she suffered 'grief, fear, trauma, and extreme anxiety.'
Reportedly, a meeting to address the 'hostile work environment' was held during production.
The complaint noted that a meeting addressed Justin’s alleged behavior and “the hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production.” Blake’s husband, among others, also attended. Reportedly, safeguards – including a full-time intimacy coordinator – were put into place.
The safeguards hinted at other alleged behavior from Justin.
According to the lawsuit, obtained by People, other demands Blake made at the meeting included “no more showing nude videos or images of women … to [Blake] and/or her employees,” “no more mention of [Justin’s] previous ‘pornography addiction,'” and “no more discussions to [Blake]…about personal experiences with sex.”
She also stipulated that “no more inquiries by [Justin] to [Blake’s] trainer without her knowledge or consent to disclose her weight,” and “no more mention by [Justin] of him ‘speaking to’ [Blake’s] dead father.”
More from CafeMom: Multitasking Mom Blake Lively Reveals She Was Pumping at Disneyland Paris: ‘Cheers!’
Additionally, Blake claimed Justin participated in a 'social manipulation' campaign to 'destroy' her reputation.
The lawsuit alleged that Justin participated in a “social manipulation” scheme to “destroy” Blake’s reputation.
Justin's lawyer has since responded to the lawsuit.
Justin’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, has hit back at the lawsuit. Bryan alleged it was intended to “fix her negative reputation,” calling the lawsuit “false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt,” per TMZ.
He also claimed that Blake caused issues while filming by “threatening to not show up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release.”
