Blake Lively vs Justin Baldoni: New Allegations, Taylor Swift’s Silence to Hiring of CIA Advisor, All That Went Down in Feb Last Week

Blake Lively’s legal battle with It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni continues with new allegations and a former CIA official joining her team. Here’s everything that happened this week.

Written by Sakina Kaukawala , Entertainment Journalist

Published on Mar 02, 2025 | 05:12 PM IST | 75.9K

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni (via Getty Images)

Trigger Warning: This article contains references to sexual assault and domestic violence.

The legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni continues with new developments this week. Lively has added former CIA official Nick Shapiro to her litigation team, filed an amended complaint with new allegations, and issued subpoenas to multiple telecom companies and social media firms.

The dispute, which started with dueling lawsuits, now involves claims of misconduct on the set of It Ends With Us, a request for a stricter protective order, and efforts to uncover alleged attempts to harm Lively’s reputation.

Blake Lively’s lawyers confirmed to Forbes that Nick Shapiro, who served as the CIA’s deputy chief of staff from 2013 to 2015, has joined her litigation team as per Forbes.

Shapiro will advise on legal communications related to Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni in New York federal court. His involvement comes as Lively seeks to manage public narratives surrounding the case.

Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, also submitted a letter requesting a more extensive protective order. Their legal team argued that more discovery in the case could expose them to threats and intimidation. The letter stated that their privacy had already been violated since the legal battle began.

Lively’s legal team filed an amended complaint this week that introduced new accusations against Baldoni. The complaint claims that at least two additional female cast members on It Ends With Us felt uncomfortable due to Baldoni’s behavior. It alleges that both women reported their concerns to Lively, who documented them and escalated the issue to higher-ups.

The lawsuit states that Baldoni was made aware of at least one complaint at the time and responded in writing, promising that adjustments would be made.

However, Lively’s attorneys claim he instead launched a public relations effort to discredit any future allegations against him. The updated complaint is 48 pages longer than the one Lively originally filed on New Year’s Eve.

It Ends With Us, directed by Baldoni and starring Lively, premiered in theaters last August and began streaming on Netflix in December 2024. Based on Colleen Hoover’s novel, the film focuses on domestic violence, but tensions between its stars has overshadowed its success.