Blake Lively is accusing It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni of a smear campaign

Blake Lively has filed a lawsuit against It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment and a campaign to “destroy” her reputation.

According to the legal filing, she accuses Mr. Baldoni and his team of tarnishing her public image after she heard “repeated sexual harassment and other disturbing behavior” from Baldoni and her at a meeting where she brought her actor husband Ryan Reynolds a producer had approached the film.

Mr Baldoni’s legal team told the BBC the allegations were “categorically false” and that they had hired a crisis manager because Ms Lively had threatened to derail the film if her demands were not met.

In the romantic drama, Ms. Lively plays a woman who finds herself in a relationship with a charming but abusive boyfriend, played by Mr. Baldoni.

The meeting between Ms. Lively and Mr. Baldoni, along with others involved in the film’s production, took place on January 4 of this year and was aimed at addressing “the hostile work environment” on set, the lawsuit says.

Ms. Lively’s husband, “Deadpool” star Mr. Reynolds, who did not appear on “It Ends With Us,” accompanied her at the showdown, the statement of claim says, which is a step ahead of a lawsuit.

Mr. Baldoni, 40, attended the meeting in his capacity as co-chairman and co-founder of the company that produced the film, Wayfarer Studios. He was also the director of the film.

In the lawsuit, Ms. Lively’s lawyers allege that both Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer CEO Jamey Heath engaged in “inappropriate and unwelcome conduct toward Ms. Lively and others on the set of It Ends With Us.”

In the filing with the California Department of Civil Rights, a list of 30 demands related to the couple’s alleged misconduct were made at the meeting to ensure they could continue producing the film.

Among them, Ms. Lively, 37, demanded that Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath’s past “pornography addiction” be no longer mentioned to Ms. Lively or other crew members, no more descriptions of their own genitals to Ms. Lively and “no more” addition of sex scenes, oral sex or climaxes on camera by BL (Blake Lively) outside the scope of the script that BL approved when signing the project,” the complaint states.

Ms. Lively also demanded that Mr. Baldoni stop saying he could talk to her dead father.

Ms. Lively’s legal team also accuses Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios of pursuing a “multi-stage plan” to destroy her reputation.

She claims this was “the intended result of a carefully crafted, coordinated and resourced retaliation plan to deter her and others from speaking out about the hostile environment that Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath created.”

In response to the legal complaint, Mr. Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, said Saturday: “It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false allegations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and their representatives.”

Mr. Freedman accused Ms. Lively of making numerous demands and threats, including “threatening not to show up on set, threatening not to promote the film,” which would ultimately “lead to its downfall during release if her demands.” would not be fulfilled.” .

He claimed that Ms Lively’s claims were “intentionally salacious, with the intent to publicly offend and rehash a narrative in the media”.

In a statement from her lawyers to the BBC, Ms Lively said: “I hope my legal action will help lift the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak out about wrongdoing and protect others who may be involved be targeted.”

She also denied that she or any of her representatives had submitted or disseminated negative information about Mr. Baldoni or Wayfarer.

The film was a box office hit, although some critics said it romanticized domestic violence.

Shortly after the August release date, another co-star, Brandon Sklenar, hinted at rumors of a rift between Ms. Lively and Mr. Baldoni in an Instagram post.

Speculation about a fight only grew when they didn’t appear on the red carpet together.

It Ends With Us tells the story of Boston florist Lily Bloom, played by Ms Lively, as she navigates a love triangle between her charming but abusive boyfriend Ryle Kincaid, played by Mr Baldoni, and her compassionate first love, Atlas Corrigan. played by Mr. Baldoni, moving Mr. Sklenar.

It is based on a bestseller by Colleen Hoover. The 45-year-old author previously said her inspiration was domestic violence suffered by her mother.

In an interview with the BBC at the film’s premiere in August, Ms Lively said she felt a “responsibility to serve the people who care so much about the source material”.

“I really feel like we’ve delivered a story that is emotional and fun, but also funny, painful, scary, tragic and inspiring, and that’s what life is, it has all its colors” said the actress.

Ms Lively, who is also credited as a producer, told the BBC she felt the film was made “with a lot of sensitivity”.

“Lily is a survivor and a victim, and while they are great labels, they are not her identity,” Ms. Lively said. “She defines herself and I find it deeply empowering that no one else can define you.”