Not long after Justin Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman assuring onlookers that he was going to sue Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds “into oblivion”, he has actually done it. In a $400 million defamation lawsuit also alleging civil extortion and invasion of privacy, Justin’s filing comes in response to the December complaint and eventual lawsuit filed by Blake alleging sexual harassment and the orchestration of a long-form smear campaign.
The constant back-and-forth mud slinging that has been going on between Justin and Blake (significantly more on the former’s end) hasn’t really left anyone surprised. But this in congruence with the $250 million lawsuit against the New York Times which first broke news of the alleged behind-the-scenes proceedings, could very well shape up to be the next Johnny Depp-Amber Heard-esque public trial.
Now while Ryan Reynolds’ involvement in it all, including Deadpool’s alt aura Nicepool (a very evident dig at Justin) featured in Last year’s Deadpool & Wolverine and him allegedly accusing Justin of “fat-shaming” his post-partum wife, is…understandable, what has left many raising their eyebrows in shock is another megastar’s intimate involvement in all the has unraveled and continues to — Taylor Swift!
The general narrative doing the rounds of the internet suggests that Taylor may have “pressurised” Justin into accepting the It Ends With Us rewrite. For context, Justin has been pretty vocal (as has Blake) about Ryan being involved in re-writing some crucial scenes in the film — the rooftop scene to be specific, seminal to the film as it marks the first time the protagonist meets the antagonist. Now before you start gauging Taylor as some sort of mafia, know that it was all covert, and more implied, in conversation and recount. Here go the details.
Early on in the 179-page filing, Justin’s lawyer claims that the actor-director “felt obliged to text Lively to say that he had liked her pages and hadn’t needed Reynolds and her megacelebrity friend to pressure him”. What apparently transpired was that after an initial tussle over how to take the rooftop scene ahead, Justin was summoned to Blake and Ryan’s New York penthouse, where the dutiful husband and a “megacelebrity friend” praised Blake’s version of the scene. So how do we know this ‘megacelebrity’ is specifically Taylor?
In text messages mentioned in the filing, Justin had written to Blake, “Also was working on rooftop scene today, I really love what you did. It really does hep a lot. Makes it so much more fun and interesting. (And I would have felt that way without Ryan and Taylor) You really are a talent across the board. Really excited nd grateful to do this together”.
Now where things get a little intense is where Blake’s replies treaded on how Ryan and Taylor are “absolute titans as writers and storytellers outside of their primary gig”; her text goes onto read, “They also know I’m not always as good at making sure I’m seen and utilized for fear of threatening egos, or fear of affecting the ease of the process. They don’t give a sh*t about that. And because of that, everyone listens to them with immense respect and enthusiasm. So I guess I have to stop worrying about people liking me”.
It doesn’t end here. Blake also proceeded to compare herself to Mother of the Dragons Khaleesi from Game of Thrones, with Taylor being one of her “beautiful monsters”: “If you ever get around to watching Game of Thrones, you’ll appreciate that I’m Khaleesi, and like her, I happen to have a few dragons. For better or worse, but usually for better. Because my dragons also protect those I fight for. So really we all benefit from those gorgeous monsters of mine. You will too, I can promise you”.
Now before the Swifties descend into panic, Taylor has not been mentioned as a defendant in the lawsuit.
Coming back to those who are, can you keep up with all the Justin-Blake drama?!
