Justin Baldoni publicly addressed his drama with It Ends With Us costar Blake Lively shortly after she responded to his $400 million lawsuit. Speaking for the first time about the legal battle, Baldoni said he’s “grateful” for those supporting him. “We have amazing friends and family and faith,” he added in a video obtained by TMZ on Friday, January 17. Baldoni’s comment came one day after he filed a lawsuit alongside his production studio and other plaintiffs claiming Lively was “determined to make Baldoni the real-life villain in her story” to cover up her allegedly “tone-deaf” promotion of their 2024 film. Baldoni further claimed that Lively — who also served as a producer on the movie — never read the Colleen Hoover novel on which it’s based. Lively previously accused Baldoni, the movie’s director, of creating a “hostile work environment” in her own lawsuit filed last month. In a statement provided to Us Weekly, Lively’s legal team slammed Baldoni’s “desperate” attempt to “turn the tables” on the actress, alleging Baldoni’s strategy “will fail.” Wrap up the week with more of Us’ top stories below:
- After Bachelor Nation’s Matt James announced his split from Rachael Kirkconnell, a source told Us the breakup was “a long time coming.” Find out what went wrong.
- Today’s Craig Melvin recalled his initial shock when he learned Hoda Kotb was leaving the morning show, even wondering whether she was being forced out of the role.
- Brittany Mahomes revealed the name she and husband Patrick Mahomes nearly gave their third baby before ultimately deciding on Golden — and it wasn’t quite on theme.
- The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law proposing to ban the popular app TikTok, but what does the decision mean for influencers and their followers? Let Us explain.
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