Director and actor Justin Baldoni’s USD 400 million extortion and defamation lawsuit against Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds has officially been dismissed. The district court reportedly dismissed the case after Justin failed to meet a court-imposed deadline to amend his claims.
Justin Baldoni`s lawsuit against Blake Lively dismissed
According to a report by Complex, a ruling was signed on October 31, wherein the U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman of the Southern District of New York confirmed that Justin, along with his company, Wayfarer Studios, missed the opportunity to revive the case. This resulted in bringing their legal battle to an end. The court remarked that the plaintiffs “failed to respond” to an order dated October 17, which asked why a final judgment shouldn’t be entered. His absence promoted the case’s formal closure.
This marks a new setback for Justin, whose complaint was earlier thrown out in June 2025 when Judge Liman decided that his defamation allegations lacked merit. The court also discovered that the statements cited in Justin`s suit, many of which were drawn from Blake`s sexual harassment complaint and a New York Times report, were protected by law under litigation and journalistic privilege.
Notably, although this decision ends Justin`s defamation and extortion claims against Blake, Ryan, and The New York Times, the director may still appeal after the court addresses motions tied to Lively’s request to recover legal fees.
About Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively`s lawsuit
Justin first filed the high-profile lawsuit in January 2025. He called it a “counterattack” in one of Hollywood’s most controversial legal showdowns. His lawsuit came a month after Blake sued Justin and Wayfarer Studios, accusing him of sexual harassment and retaliation on the set of their film It Ends With Us, which was directed and co-starred by Justin.
In her filings, Blake described “disturbing” on-set behaviour, including an incident where Justin allegedly “leaned forward and slowly dragged his lips from her ear down her neck,” while telling her, “It smells so good.” The actress also claimed tha he insisted on including explicit scenes while making inappropriate comments about her marriage to Ryan.
