Legal battle gets dirtier: Justin Baldoni demands 388 million euros from Blake Lively!
USA - Just over a month ago, Blake Lively (37) filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against her "Just One More Time" co-star Justin Baldoni (40). But he vehemently refutes the allegations and is now fighting back.
After the 40-year-old had already filed a lawsuit against the New York Times for the equivalent of 240 million euros, he has now filed another for around 388 million euros against Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds (48).
As Page Six reported, the actor also dragged superstar Taylor Swift (35) into the conflict, as text messages are said to prove.
He claimed that he had been invited by Lively and her husband to talk about a rewritten scene in the script.
A "famous and famously close friend" of the couple - Taylor Swift - is said to have been present and celebrated the reworked scene. Baldoni stated that he felt uncomfortable under the pressure of the presence of the mega-star and Lively's husband.
In his complaint, he also stated that the 37-year-old had become increasingly "intrusive" in the production of the film - far beyond the scope of her professional authority.
"For example, Lively insisted on taking creative control over her character's wardrobe," Baldoni said.
Justin Baldoni sues Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds
In his complaint, the 40-year-old also addressed the allegations in Lively's lawsuit. He explained that he had never visited the actress while she was breastfeeding her child.
The discussion about his alleged "porn addiction" had also only arisen in the context of a scene review.
He also denied the alleged smear campaign against the former "Gossip Girl" star and explained that she herself was responsible for her bad reputation.
His lawyer also stated, "It also appears that Lively worked for months with the equally powerful New York Times to prepare a false and damaging story to be used against the plaintiffs."
He added that the lawsuit was a legal action based on a large amount of untainted evidence documenting a devious attempt by Lively and her team to destroy Baldoni and his team by leaking unsubstantiated, new and manipulated information to the media.
"Given our unqualified willingness to produce all full text messages, emails, video recordings and other documentary evidence exchanged in real time between the parties, it is clear that this is a battle she will not win and one she will surely regret," he concluded.