Judge Dismisses Justin Baldoni’s $400M lawsuit against Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds

A judge on Monday dismissed Justin Baldoni's $400 million defamation lawsuit against Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, finding that her accusations of sexual harassment were legally protected and therefore immune from suit.

U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman in Manhattan dismissed Baldoni’s entire lawsuit — which also alleged extortion and other claims — but allowed him to amend and refile a couple of allegations regarding interference with contracts.

“Today’s opinion is a total victory and a complete vindication for Blake Lively, along with those that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties dragged into their retaliatory lawsuit, including Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Sloane and The New York Times,” Lively’s lawyers said in a statement. “As we have said from day one, this ‘$400 million’ lawsuit was a sham, and the Court saw right through it. We look forward to the next round, which is seeking attorneys’ fees, treble damages and punitive damages against Baldoni, Sarowitz, Nathan, and the other Wayfarer Parties who perpetrated this abusive litigation.”

Lively has sued Baldoni in federal court for sexual harassment and retaliation, alleging that he and the producers of the 2024 movie "It Ends with Us" launched a smear campaign against her after she complained about conditions on the set of the film.

In response, Baldoni retaliated with the defamation claim against the New York Times, Lively, Reynolds, and their publicist, alleging that they had conspired to destroy his career with false allegations.

Baldoni said Lively tried to hijack "It Ends with Us," which he directed and whose themes included domestic violence, and then blamed him when her "disastrous" promotional approach prompted an online backlash against her.

In turn, Lively had called Baldoni's lawsuit a "vengeful" attempt to weaponize the federal courts and pursue a "sinister campaign to bury and destroy" her for speaking out.

The Times, meanwhile, said it shouldn't be punished merely for newsgathering, and said a statement in the article that Baldoni led a "smear campaign" in retaliation for Lively's complaints was "protected opinion".

In his ruling on Monday, Liman found that the initial claims — first made in a complaint to the California Civil Rights Department and shared with the Times — were shielded by the litigation privilege, which immunizes legal claims from defamation actions.

The Times’ reporting on the claims was also protected under the “fair report” privilege, which allows media outlets to cover legal proceedings without incurring defamation liability.

“We are grateful to the court for seeing the lawsuit against The New York Times for what it was: a meritless attempt to stifle honest reporting,” a Times spokesperson said in a statement. “Our journalists went out and covered carefully and fairly a story of public importance, and the court recognized that the law is designed to protect just that sort of journalism. We will continue to stand up in court for our journalism and for our journalists when their work comes under attack.”

Reynolds, Lively’s husband, was accused in the suit of defaming Baldoni by calling him a “sexual predator.” 

The judge found that Reynolds was relying on Lively’s version of events, which he had no reason to doubt.

He also found that Leslie Sloane, Lively’s publicist, did not defame Baldoni in her dealings with the Daily Mail, finding that Sloane likewise relied on Lively’s account.

A trial on Lively’s complaint against Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios is set for March 2026.