Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni end 'It Ends With Us' dispute in settlement 

NEW YORK (AP):

Actors Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni agreed Monday to end their legal feud over the acrimonious production of their 2024 film It Ends With Us, averting a trial that threatened to further tarnish their reputations and expose the dark side of Hollywood moviemaking.

The co-stars turned courtroom adversaries settled the civil case two weeks before they were to go to trial in New York on Lively’s claims that Baldoni conspired with publicists to preemptively destroy her reputation after she privately accused him of sexually harassing her on the movie set.

“Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors — and all survivors — is a goal that we stand behind," Lively and Baldoni said in a joint statement issued through their lawyers.

"It is our sincere hope that this brings closure and allows all involved to move forward constructively and in peace, including a respectful environment online."

The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Lively, 38, sued Baldoni, 42, and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, at the end of 2024. Weeks later, Baldoni sued Lively, accusing her, her husband — Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds — and their publicist of defamation and extortion.

Baldoni, who directed the dark romantic drama and starred in it with Lively, had denied harassing her or orchestrating a smear campaign. He’d claimed the complaints about his behaviour were made up by Lively as part of an effort to seize creative control of the movie.

Monday's settlement came after a federal judge in Manhattan tossed some of each actor’s claims.

Last June, Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni’s defamation and extortion lawsuit. In April, he threw out Lively’s sexual harassment claims, ruling that she couldn’t pursue them under federal law because she was an independent contractor rather than an employee on the movie set.

In their joint statement, the parties said they recognise that Lively’s concerns “deserved to be heard” and that they ”remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments”.

The trial, now no longer necessary, had been scheduled to begin with jury selection on May 18.

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AP26124746031019: Blake Lively (left) and Justin Baldoni.