Blake Lively and Taylor Swift's text messages revealed in lawsuit against Justin Baldoni
A collection of private text messages and emails involving Blake Lively — including personal exchanges with her longtime friend Taylor Swift — has been made public after being unsealed as part of the ongoing legal battle between Lively and actor-director Justin Baldoni. The documents were filed by Baldoni’s legal team as the case moves closer to trial and stem from Lively’s lawsuit accusing Baldoni and a crisis communications specialist he hired of harassment and orchestrating a campaign to damage her reputation after she raised concerns about his behavior during the filming of the 2024 romantic drama It Ends With Us. Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, later countersued Lively and her husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, alleging defamation and extortion, though that countersuit was dismissed last June by U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman. The judge has not yet ruled on whether Lively’s case will proceed, but the trial remains scheduled for May 18 and could draw significant attention given the number of high-profile figures referenced in court filings as potential witnesses or individuals with relevant knowledge, including Swift, Gigi Hadid, Emily Blunt, Alexis Bledel, America Ferrera, Hugh Jackman, Candace Owens, Perez Hilton and designer Ashley Avignone.
The unsealed messages reveal candid conversations between Lively and Swift as the dispute unfolded, including discussions about Hollywood power dynamics and public perception surrounding the film. In one April 2024 exchange, Swift reacted to the use of her song “My Tears Ricochet” in the film’s trailer, suggesting Baldoni underestimated how the association could shift leverage in Lively’s favor. Subsequent messages show Swift offering emotional support as Lively described the toll the conflict was taking on her, while also expressing concern that Lively’s texts had begun to sound impersonal amid mounting stress. Other messages reference media coverage of Baldoni and later developments in his career, including his separation from his talent agency, which Swift framed as a decisive turning point. Lively’s attorney argued in court that the private texts are irrelevant to the core allegations and emphasized that the case centers on claims of workplace sexual harassment and boundary violations during filming, including alleged unwanted physical contact and unscripted intimate moments. Baldoni’s lawyer countered that the complaint relies on minor grievances that do not meet the legal standard for a hostile work environment, a point the judge questioned while signaling he is still weighing how issues of consent apply on a movie set when evaluating the totality of the circumstances.
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