Blake Lively’s Massive Legal Bill in Justin Baldoni It Ends With Us Case Revealed
Blake Lively’s legal battle against Justin Baldoni over the It Ends With Us lawsuit racks up a massive sum. Lively sued Baldoni in 2024, alleging that he committed sexual harassment during the filming of the romance drama. The case finally reached a settlement in May this year.
How much money has Blake Lively had to pay in legal fees because of the Justin Baldoni situation?
While the legal battle seems to be over, a new update reveals that Blake Lively spent over $8 million in legal fees related to the situation (via Deadline). More specifically, Lively spent a total sum of $8,035,040.88 to fight Baldoni’s $400 million counter-defamation lawsuit. That’s the sum that Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios will have to pay to cover Lively’s legal fees. Baldoni has until July 13 to cover Lively’s fees.
“Lively respectfully requests the Court award her reasonable attorneys’ fees of $7,495,526.87 and costs in the amount of $539,514.01,” states a filing from Lively’s lawyers.
Lively’s legal team also branded Baldoni’s counter-suit moves as “scorched-earth litigation tactics” in a now-published memorandum of law. Michael Gottlieb and Esra Hudson, who acted as Lively’s lawyers during the two-year battle, added, “Thanks to this landmark decision, those considering using a lawsuit as a weapon of intimidation have been put on notice that there are consequences for doing so.”
Following the announcement of the settlement, Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, called his wife “fearless” in a tribute post.
It Ends with Us was released in theaters on August 9, 2024, to mixed reviews, but that didn’t stop the film from grossing over $300 million at the box office. The film, directed by and starring Baldoni, is based on the eponymous 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover. The feature screenplay was written by Christy Hall. The original novel also received a sequel, called It Starts with Us, though it’s unlikely that the film will follow suit.
Source: Comingsoon.net