Justin Baldoni revealed he is trying to stay positive as his courtroom battle with Blake Lively continues to escalate.
On Monday, the It Ends With Us star, 41, revealed he was ‘actually doing wonderful’ while speaking to TMZ at Los Angeles International Airport.
When asked how he was managing the high-profile dispute, the actor declared he was ‘very grateful,’ ‘very positive’ and feeling ‘a lot of love.’
After the reporter remarked he appears to ‘be taking the high road’ amid his legal war with his former costar, the father-of-two explained ‘that’s what we always try to do.’
Baldoni’s comments come just weeks after powerhouse attorney Alexandra Shapiro joined his legal team.
According to paperwork filed September 15, Shapiro, a former clerk for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, had been formally added as counsel for both Baldoni and his company, Wayfarer Studios.
Justin Baldoni says he is trying to stay positive as his courtroom battle with Blake Lively escalates
Shapiro’s client roster has included big names such as Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
But while Baldoni is bolstering his defense, recent court filings are raising further questions about his alleged conduct.
In documents submitted on September 4 and obtained by DailyMail.com, an individual alleged repeated ‘negative interactions’ with Baldoni and his team on a past Wayfarer-related project.
The declaration, filed by one of Lively’s attorneys, claimed the person experienced ‘verbal abuse’ from the actor.
The accuser also said they requested Baldoni be excluded from marketing and publicity efforts tied to the project.
Though their name has been redacted, TMZ reported the individual is ‘likely to testify against Justin in Lively’s trial.’
The declaration was submitted under penalty of perjury.
The allegations surfaced just as Lively filed a sweeping new motion seeking attorney’s fees, treble damages, and punitive damages against Baldoni’s company Wayfarer Studios and its executives.
On Monday, the It Ends With Us star, 41, revealed he was ‘actually doing wonderful’ while speaking to TMZ at Los Angeles International Airport
When asked how he was managing the high-profile dispute with his former costar (seen above last year), the actor declared he was ‘very grateful,’ ‘very positive’ and feeling ‘a lot of love’
In the 30-page filing in federal court, Lively’s lawyers argued that Wayfarer’s defamation lawsuit against her was ‘baseless from the start.’
They said the lawsuit amounted to a retaliatory attack after she reported harassment and retaliation.
The motion accuses the company of attempting to ‘damage her credibility and conceal their own unlawful acts’ by flooding the public docket with redacted exhibits and character attacks.
Lively’s team argues the conduct fits squarely into what California Civil Code Section 47.1 was designed to prevent — retaliatory lawsuits against those who come forward with harassment complaints.
Under that statute, Lively is asking the court to impose severe penalties, including treble damages and punitive damages.
She is permitted to request the court recognize her as the ‘prevailing defendant’ entitled to recover legal fees.
The motion also cites alleged threats made by Sarowitz, who was described as vowing to spend $100 million to ruin the lives of Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.
After the reporter remarked he appears to ‘be taking the high road’ amid his legal war with his former costar, the father-of-two explained ‘that’s what we always try to do’ (seen in 2024)
According to the filing, Sarowitz allegedly declared at one point: ‘I will protect the studio like Israel protected itself from Hamas. There were 39,000 dead bodies.
‘There will be two dead bodies when I’m done. Minimum. Not dead, but “you’re dead to me.” So that kind of dead. But dead to a lot of people’
Baldoni and Lively has been embroiled in a legal battle for months.
In December 2024, the actress sued Justin for allegedly sexually harassing her on set — claims he vehemently denied – before he and Wayfarer Studios fired back with a defamation suit against Blake, her husband and publicist Leslie Sloane.
Baldoni also waged war with The New York Times, filing a $250million lawsuit against the publication over its bombshell tell-all on Lively’s sexual harassment claims against her former co-star on December 31, 2024.
The New York Times denied the allegations.
On June 9, however, it was learned that a judge dismissed Baldoni’s lawsuit in a major setback for the actor’s hopes for a blockbuster win over the millionaire actress.
In December 2024, the actress sued Justin for allegedly sexually harassing her on set — claims he has vehemently denied; Lively and Baldoni pictured in their 2024 film It Ends with Us
Judge Lewis J Liman dismissed Baldoni’s suit alleging defamation and extortion on the basis that all Lively’s allegations were made within privileged court papers.
The judge said in the order obtained by DailyMail.com: ‘The Wayfarer Parties have not alleged that Lively is responsible for any statements other than the statements in her CRD complaint, which are privileged.
‘The Wayfarer Parties have alleged that Reynolds and [publicist Leslie] Sloane made additional statements accusing Baldoni of sexual misconduct and that the Times made additional statements accusing the Wayfarer Parties of engaging in a smear campaign.
‘But the Wayfarer Parties have not alleged that Reynolds, Sloane or the Times would have seriously doubted these statements were true based on the information available to them, as is required for them to be liable for defamation under applicable law.
‘The Wayfarer Parties’ additional claims also fail. Accordingly, the Amended Complaint must be dismissed in its entirety.’
The judge ruled: ‘The Times reviewed the available evidence and reported, perhaps in a dramatized manner, what it believed to have happened. The Times had no obvious motive to favor Lively’s version of events.’
He dismissed the lawsuit against The New York Times as well.
