Justin Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit accusing Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds of extortion and defamation has been officially dismissed. The case came to an end after Baldoni and his legal team failed to meet the deadline to appeal the original dismissal in late 2025, marking a significant development in the Blake Lively lawsuit dismissal.
Details Behind the Dismissal of Baldoni’s Lawsuit
On October 31, 2025, U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman of the Southern District of New York issued a final ruling dismissing the lawsuit filed by Justin Baldoni against Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. This dismissal finalized the case after Baldoni and his lawyers did not submit any appeal or justification to continue by October 17, 2025. The failure to act led the court to issue a final judgment that effectively ended the legal battle.
This final decision follows Judge Liman’s earlier ruling in June 2025, which dismissed the suit initially. Although Baldoni had until mid-October to challenge that dismissal, he and his team chose not to take any action to revive the case.
Background of the Conflict Between Baldoni and Lively
The lawsuit originated from a formal complaint Blake Lively filed in December 2024 during the production of the film It Ends With Us. Lively’s complaint accused Baldoni of creating a hostile work environment severe enough to require an all-hands meeting on set. During this meeting, Lively requested that Baldoni cease showing her explicit videos or images of women, stop referencing his pornography addiction and sexual encounters in her presence, and refrain from commenting on her weight.
Additionally, the complaint mentioned an agreement that was made by Wayfarer Studios and the cast to promote the film by focusing on Lively’s character’s strength and resilience rather than framing it primarily as a domestic violence story. However, Lively claimed that Baldoni violated this agreement by speaking openly about the movie’s intense themes in interviews, which added to the tension and dispute.
Expansion of Allegations and Role of Ryan Reynolds
The lawsuit later grew to include Ryan Reynolds, Lively’s husband, based on allegations that Baldoni and his public relations manager, Melissa Nathan, plotted to damage Lively’s reputation on social media. The filing contained extensive text messages, spanning 22 pages, between Baldoni’s publicist and Nathan, in which they discussed strategies to effectively have Lively “buried.”
“more on [Lively’s character’s] strength and resilience as opposed to describing the film as a story about domestic violence.”
— Blake Lively, filing
This sharp conflict between Lively and Baldoni, which involved serious accusations and detailed communications, intensified the lawsuit before its dismissal by the court.
Implications and What This Means Going Forward
The dismissal of Justin Baldoni’s lawsuit against Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds puts an end to months of legal conflict stemming from allegations of workplace misconduct and public reputation attacks. The final judgment reinforces that the matter will no longer be pursued in court, which could allow all parties to move past the highly publicized dispute. It may also signal to the entertainment industry the seriousness with which allegations of inappropriate behavior and workplace issues are treated but also the importance of following procedural rules in litigation.
