Justin Baldoni’s crisis team named Taylor Swift in a ploy to ‘takedown’ her best friend Blake Lively, following her bombshell lawsuit.
Blake has taken legal action against Justin, accusing him of sexual harassment and creating a toxic work environment on the set of their movie It Ends With Us, in which he both directed her and starred with her. He has denied the allegations.
Justin has been accused of entering Blake’s trailer while she was ‘nude,’ and of letting his ‘friends’ watch her film sex scenes.
In legal documents, Blake’s team claim that an ‘all hands’ meeting was held on January 4 of this year, purportedly ‘to address the hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the Film.’
Exhibits attached to the complaint showed a crisis management expert working for Justin wrote in an August 6 email that ‘people like Taylor Swift, have been accused of utilizing these tactics to ‘bully’ into getting what they want.’
Justin’s crisis management expert also points out in the email Blake and Taylor’s huge fanbase, which will be taken ‘extremely seriously’.
Justin Baldoni’s (pictured) crisis team has named Taylor Swift in a ploy to ‘takedown’ her best pal Blake Lively, following her bombshell lawsuit
Now, Justin’s PR team has claimed Blake’s best friend Taylor, is an example of someone using bully tactics into getting what they want’ (pictured together)
According to US Weekly, the email writes: ‘We have seen the most innocuous issues turn giant due to socials or the hugest crises have no effect on social whatsoever.
‘You just cannot tell at this stage. But, BL does have some of the same TS fanbase so we will be taking it extremely seriously.’
A separate document from Justin’s team also mentions the ‘weaponisation of feminism’.
The doc reads: ‘Our team can also explore planting stories about the weaponisation of feminism and how people like Taylor Swift, have been accused of utilising these tactics to “bully” into getting what they want.’
MailOnline has contacted Taylor’s representatives for a comment.
The meeting held on January 4 is said to have included both Justin and Jamey Heath, the CEO of his production company Wayfarer Studios, and a producer on It Ends With Us.
Attendees allegedly discussed supposed ‘inappropriate conduct’ by Justin and Jamey, and at the end of the meeting, ‘all parties present agreed that the outlined conduct would cease,’ per a copy of the suit obtained by the New York Times.
One point that was purportedly ‘agreed’ upon was: ‘No more entering, attempting to enter, interrupting, pressuring or asking BL to enter her trailer or the makeup trailer by Mr Heath or Mr Baldoni while she is nude, for any reason.’
A separate document from Justin’s team also mentions the ‘weaponisation of feminism’ (Taylor and Blake pictured in February)
Blake has taken legal action against Justin, accusing him of sexual harassment and creating a toxic work environment on the set of their movie It Ends With Us, in which he both directed her and starred with her. He has furiously denied allegations
Justin has been accused of entering Blake’s trailer while she was ‘nude,’ and of letting his ‘friends’ watch her film sex scenes (Justin and Blake pictured filming It Ends With Us)
Another read: ‘All actors participating with BL in intimate scenes involving her being in any state of nudity or simulated nudity must be classified as active, working actors, not “friends” of the director or producers, and must be pre-approved by BL.’
The lawsuit includes allegations that Justin showed Blake nude videos and images of other women, discussed his alleged porn addiction, and made inappropriate remarks about her weight, her late father, and other members of the cast and crew.
Blake’s legal filing also holds that Justin ‘improvised physical intimacy’ during a scene without prior discussion or choreography.
One incident reportedly involved Justin ‘discreetly biting and sucking on Ms. Blake’s lower lip’ during multiple takes, allegedly insisting on reshooting the scene repeatedly despite Blake’s clear discomfort.
The lawsuit alleges Justin made sexual inquiries, including asking Blake if she and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, experienced simultaneous climaxes— a question she found intrusive and refused to answer.
Blake’s legal action claims that before filming began, Justin ‘inserted improvised gratuitous sexual content and/or scenes involving nudity into the film (including for an underage character) in highly unsettling ways.’
Among the alleged changes were a ‘scene in which Blake was to orgasm on-camera’ and a ‘detailed scene’ depicting Lily Bloom, the younger version of Blake’s character, losing her virginity—neither of which appeared in the original novel.
According to the complaint, these additions were made without Blake’s consent after she had already committed to the project.
In legal documents, Blake’s team claim that an ‘all hands’ meeting was held on January 4 of this year, purportedly ‘to address the hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the Film’
Blake’s court documents claim Justin ‘improvised physical intimacy’ during a scene without prior discussion or choreography
When Blake raised objections, Justin allegedly defended the changes by claiming they were added because he was crafting the story ‘through the female gaze.’
While he ultimately agreed to remove most of the scenes, he reportedly fought to retain one depicting Lily and Ryle Kincaid, his character, climaxing together on their wedding night, stating it was ‘important to him because he and his partner climax simultaneously during intercourse.’
The allegations extend to the film’s producer, Jamey, who is accused of compounding the toxic environment.
The lawsuit claims Jamey pressured Blake to simulate nudity during a childbirth scene, despite prior agreements that no nudity was required.
The scene allegedly lacked standard industry protections, leaving Blake ‘mostly nude with her legs spread wide in stirrups and only a small piece of fabric covering her genitalia.’
Jamey is also accused of showing Blake and her assistant a graphic, fully nude video of his wife giving birth, which Blake initially mistook for pornography.
Additionally, both Justin and Jamey allegedly entered Blake’s trailer unannounced on multiple occasions while she was undressed, breastfeeding, or otherwise vulnerable.
The complaint details an incident where Jamey entered Blake’s makeup trailer uninvited while she was topless.
Although Blake requested he wait until she was clothed, Jamey allegedly stared at her despite her explicit request that he avert his eyes.
Another unsettling claim involves Justin improvising an intimate moment during a slow-dance scene.
According to the lawsuit, Justin leaned in as himself, not in character, and ‘slowly dragged his lips from her ear to her neck’ saying, ‘It smells so good.’
When Blake objected to his actions, Justin allegedly retorted, ‘I’m not even attracted to you.’
Following a meeting in January 2024 between Blake, Justin, producers, and Ryan Reynolds, Wayfarer Studios reportedly agreed to have an intimacy coordinator on set for all scenes involving nudity or simulated sex.
The studio also assured that no further improvised kissing or physical intimacy would occur.
Meanwhile, bombshell text messages how how Justin’s crisis management team allegedly launched a smear campaign against Blake.
Blake’s team say messages included as part of the legal complaint reveal, ‘a multi-tiered plan that Justin and his team described as ‘social manipulation’ designed to ‘destroy’ Blake’s reputation’, which they say began after she raised concerns about conditions on set.
Meanwhile, bombshell text messages how how Justin’s crisis management team allegedly launched a smear campaign against Blake
Many of the messages included in the complaint show exchanges between publicist Jennifer Abel and crisis management expert Melissa Nathan
Rumours of a rift between the movie’s leads began to swirl amid its press run, after eagle-eyed fans noted a frostiness between the pair on the red carpet
Rumours of a rift between the movie’s leads began to swirl amid its press run, after eagle-eyed fans noted a frostiness between the pair on the red carpet.
But Blake was wary of Justin even prior to filming according to her legal complaint and claims they clashed over him trying to add ‘gratuitous’ nudity and sex scenes to the movie.
Relations soured even further during filming, and culminated in a HR meeting where various conditions were agreed to by Justin and his Wayfarer studio before Blake would consider resuming filming after the writers’ strike, the filings state.
Then sometime before August 2, Justin hired crisis management expert Melissa Nathan, whose previous clients have included Jonny Depp, as part of his PR team which also included publicist Jennifer Abel.
Many of the messages in the lawsuit, obtained by a subpoena, are between the women, including one exchange in which Nathan states that she can ‘bury anyone’.
The message was sent in reply to Jennifer’s text which says that Justin, ‘wants to feel like she [Blake] can be buried’.
‘Of course – but you know when we send over documents we can’t send over the work we will or could do because that could get us in a lot of trouble,’ Nathan responds, adding, ‘We can’t write we will destroy her’.
She followed up the message with another which reads, ‘Imagine if a document saying all the things that he wants ends up in the wrong hands.
‘You know we can bury anyone but I can’t write that to him. I will be very tough.’
Another back and forth on August 2 appears to show Nathan joking about murdering Blake.
‘I also sent you a present. Don’t worry, I didn’t kill her and send her in a box to your house. It’s a congratulations present,’ the message from Nathan reads, to which Jennifer responds: ‘DAMNIT’.
Later that same day, Jennifer wrote that she is, ‘having reckless thoughts of wanting to plant pieces this week about how horrible Blake is to work with’.
Meanwhile, Justin appears to have suggested that it would be beneficial if they could orchestrate a targeted social media campaign.
He sent a message showing a screenshot of a Twitter thread about allegations of bullying against Hailey Bieber with the caption: ‘This is what we would need’.
When reports began to emerge of tensions between Blake and Justin, it was suggested that the differences were merely creative.
The Gossip Girl star claims Justin fostered a toxic workplace environment during filming which included sexual harassment
She claims that she was subjected to a smear campaign after she raised her concerns with Justin and his studio. This exchange appears to show Abel and Nathan joking about killing Lively
Justin wanted to market the movie by spotlighting the domestic abuse which forms the heart of the story, while Blake felt it should be more hopeful and uplifting.
Blake was subsequently criticised for the ‘tone deaf’ way she promoted the film after she failed to mention domestic abuse in several interviews.
It is unclear if this reaction was engineered, but Justin’s messages appear to show he was at least ready to capitalise on the negative press.
‘What is the TikTok strategy?’ Justin writes in one message. ‘I’d like you guys to start posting me ONLY talking about domestic violence and clips and why this movie is so important’.
But as the controversy around the film raged on, some of the more nefarious allegations Blake had privately levelled at Justin began to appear in the press.
They included that he made inappropriate comments about her weight and ‘lingered’ too long during kissing scenes.
The texts show how the crisis management team scrambled to try and ‘shift the narrative’ by reverting coverage back onto Justin.
On August 11, Jennifer sent Justin a message reassuring him that the stories were not a threat.
The duo starred opposite each other in the hotly-anticipated adaptation of the popular Coleen Hoover novel by the same name earlier this year
Baldoni also appears to wade in at times and suggest his own tactics to discredit Lively
The messages show the publicists celebrating after they manage to minimize reports about Lively’s allegations in the press
‘Very little pick up. Fans remain supportive of you and believe the issue of the ‘feud’ is because she took control of the movie,’ she wrote.
The day before, Nathan remarked to Jennifer that: ‘The majority of socials are pro Justin and I don’t even agree with half of them lol’. In another, Nathan revels in the ‘genius’ strategy.
‘Jen this went so well I am f***king dying. I have to call you in a bit bit and tel you how this went. It was genius.’
Further allegations about Justin’s unwelcome behavior are included in the legal complaint.
They include claims that Justin showed Lively an explicit video of his wife, barged into the star’s trailer while she was nude or breastfeeding, openly discussed his alleged porn addiction and made her and other female staffers uncomfortable with overtly sexual comments.
The issues were dealt with during a January meeting between Blake, Justin and several studio representatives where several changes were agreed including the addition of an intimacy coordinator on set.
‘Although our perspective differs in many aspects, ensuring a safe environment for all is paramount,’ Wayfarer acknowledges, according to the legal complaint.
However, a media strategy document apparently from the crisis management team also included in the legal complaint outlines how the team plans to protect Justin’s reputation, along with that of lead producer Jamey Heath and fwayfWayfarer.
The document outlines several possible talking points to boost Justin, but also discredit Blake.
One of the alleged strategies was to suggest that Lively had created a ‘imbalance of power’ on set by involving her husband Ryan Reynolds
They include her, ‘less than favorable reputation in the industry’, how she involved her husband Ryan Reynolds to ‘create an imbalance of power’.
In post-production, Blake brought in her own editor to recut a version of the film which was the one ultimately chosen for distribution.
In another message, Justin appears to suggest capitalising on Reynolds’ involvement as another means of targeting Blake.
‘My partner asked about flipping the narrative from this leak this AM about Ryan saying script was a disaster and he saved the movie,’ the message reads before suggesting, ‘using their own words against them’.
The document also suggests some crew members allegedly lost their jobs due to Blake’s insistence on creative control.
Justin has refuted the claims through his lawyer Brian Freedman.
‘It is shameful that Mrs. Lively Band her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film,’ he said.
‘Interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions.
In her lawsuit, Blake claims Justin showed her nude images and videos of women, talked about an alleged previous porn addiction and made sexual comments about the cast and crew
The messages show Justin suggesting how they might ‘flip the narrative’ as more stories emerge about the controversy surrounding the film
Others show the publicists celebrating when their efforts pay off
‘These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.
‘Wayfarer Studios made the decision to proactively hire a crisis manager prior to the marketing campaign of the film, to work alongside their own representative with Jonesworks employed by Stephanie Jones, due to the multiple demands and threats made by Ms. Lively during production which included her threatening to not showing up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release, if her demands were not met.
‘It was also discovered that Ms. Lively enlisted her own representative, Leslie Sloan with Vision PR, who also represents Mr. Reynolds, to plant negative and completely fabricated and false stories with media, even prior to any marketing had commenced for the film, which was another reason why Wayfarer Studios made the decision to hire a crisis professional to commence internal scenario planning in the case they needed to address.
‘The representatives of Wayfarer Studios still did nothing proactive nor retaliated, and only responded to incoming media inquiries to ensure balanced and factual reporting and monitored social activity.
‘What is pointedly missing from the cherry-picked correspondence is the evidence that there were no proactive measures taken with media or otherwise; just internal scenario planning and private correspondence to strategize which is standard operating procedure with public relations professionals,’ Freedman added.
Blake denied planting false or negative stories about her co-star or his company.
‘I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted,’ she said.
