Click for more updates and latest Hollywood News along with Bollywood and Entertainment updates. Also get latest news and top headlines from India and around the World at The Indian Express.
© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Justin Baldoni and his legal team backtracked their decision of dragging popstar Taylor Swift to court after earlier filing to subpoena her in the legal battle with Gossip Girl fame, Blake Lively. In a Deadline report on Thursday, Baldoni withdrew the court filing seeking answers and documents from the Cruel Summer singer about what she knew about the situation with Wayfarer Studios co-founder and her best friend Lively, with whom her friendship goes long back. Baldoni had earlier accused Swift of her creative involvement in the case, alleging that both Ryan Reynolds and the Grammy winner played a part in changing the rooftop scene in the film It Ends With Us. According to the reports, Taylor will no longer be subpoenaed, and the probe against her has been ordered to be officially suspended.
On May 22, Baldoni’s legal team, led by Bryan Freedman, responded that they had received all the information they were seeking without detailing much about their latest move. In a series of screenshots shared by Baldoni back in January, from his $400 million lawsuit against co-star Lively and his team, the actor/director underlined the part when he was invited to Lively’s house for dinner in the presence of both Reynolds and Swift, where he was forced to make changes to the script based on what Lively wanted. He even shared screenshots showing Lively calling her husband and best friend her dragons, alluding to the popular show Game of Thrones. While both Swift and Baldoni’s teams declined to provide a statement, Blake Lively’s rep told Deadline that the team is celebrating the end of the “inappropriate subpoena.”
“We are pleased that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties have withdrawn their harassing subpoenas to Taylor Swift and her law firm,” the rep told the outlet. They added, “We supported the efforts of Taylor’s team to quash these inappropriate subpoenas directed to her counsel, and we will continue to stand up for any third party who is unjustly harassed or threatened in the process.” Calling the 14-time Grammy winner a woman who has been an aspiration to millions around the world, they said that “exploiting Taylor Swift’s celebrity was the original plan in [PR professional] Melissa Nathan’s scenario planning document, and it continues to this day.” The team later claimed that Baldoni’s legal team, fearing justification, backtracked and that they will soon run out of excuses to distract the case from the actual claims of sexual harassment and retaliation they are facing.
This is not the first time Lively supported Swift in the court drama. Earlier, after the subpoena was issued, the actor’s team slammed Baldoni, comparing his move to Barnum & Bailey Circus, adding that “the defendants continue to publicly intimidate, bully, shame, and attack women’s rights and reputations.” Lively sued Justin Baldoni in December 2024, right after the release of It Ends With Us, accusing her co-star and director of the film of sexual harassment, creating a hostile working environment, making creative changes without consulting her, and launching a smear campaign. In response, Baldoni countersued her in January.
Click for more updates and latest Hollywood News along with Bollywood and Entertainment updates. Also get latest news and top headlines from India and around the World at The Indian Express.
