Um, this is… odd.
Blake Lively‘s brother-in-law Bart Johnson is seemingly walking back all his harsh comments about Justin Baldoni!! What?!
The High School Musical alum has been very vocal amid Blake’s legal battle, calling someone “a fraud” who put on a “‘costume’ of a hero, man bun and all.” Obvi everyone took the brutal comments to be directed at Baldoni! Later, he also gushed about the Gossip Girl star and hit back at a critic who dissed the way Ryan Reynolds‘ wife had handled the It Ends With Us promo, saying in part, “the truth has not come out yet.”
Simply put, he seemed 100% on Team Blake. And sure, he may not have called out the director by name, but given the context of the comments, it seemed undeniable who he was shading! But now he’s insisting some of this was never about Justin AT ALL! Seriously?
Related: Blake Lively’s High School Classmate ‘Not Surprised’ By ‘Nasty’ Allegations
Earlier this week, the actor took to X (Twitter) to celebrate the 19th anniversary of HSM. That’s when a fan wondered if he’d deleted his past tweets about Justin because Blake and Ryan were now “being exposed as liars.” Robyn Lively‘s hubby replied on Tuesday:
“My [past] comment wasn’t for any individual. Never said a name. It was directed at a certain ‘type’ [of person] that I find performative and disingenuous when they post clips of themselves being ‘amazing’ and even add sappy music to enhance it. There’s a lot of that out there.”
He’s not wrong, there are a lot of these kinds of podcasters and other influencers out there. But when you go back and read his “fraud” tweet, it seemed very much like he was talking about one very specific unnamed person. He wrote at the time:
“He’s a fraud. He puts on the ‘costume’ of a hero, man bun and all. Used all of the trendy catchphrases & buzz words for his podcasts. None of it’s genuine. It’s all theater. And everyone fell for it. For years. Rewatch his videos with a more critical eye and watch him compliment and praise himself with faux humility and self deprecation. What a performance.”
“He.” “His videos.” If you were trying to speak about a bunch of people, wouldn’t you be more vague? Bart was clearly talking about one guy. Not to mention, he’s commented about Blake’s lawsuit more directly in other comments, so he definitely had some beef with Justin!
Now, though, it seems like Bart’s upset he was ever “unkind” to anyone — no matter why, as he continued:
“Anytime I’ve said anything unkind about someone I’ve regretted it. Fortunately that’s almost never and definitely not when I’m at my best. Regardless if it’s true or not, if it’s my opinion, even if I’m trying to speak truth or stand up for someone, it’s never good. Even in times where it might ‘feel’ justified and doing the right thing, it makes no difference. There’s a better way.”
He added:
“It’s below the standard I have for myself and I regret it. I do sincerely apologize to anyone I’ve hurt or let down by saying something that sounds mean. I’ll do better. If you follow me you know you’ll be hard pressed to find more than 1 time I’ve criticized anyone on social. It’s not my jam.”
Whoa. This really sounds like he’s apologizing to Justin, right??
The 54-year-old finished by reminding fans that he’s usually a more positive person, writing:
“You can easily find a million times I’ve uplifted, support, encourage and uplifted my family, friends, followers & strangers. That’s what I’m committed to and where I find my happiness. We all have flaws and I’m definitely a work in progress and doing my best to grow and be better. Sending ALL my love to ALL of you.
.”
Anytime I’ve said anything unkind about someone I’ve regretted it. Fortunately that’s almost never and definitely not when I’m at my best. Regardless if it’s true or not, if it’s my opinion, even if I’m trying to speak truth or stand up for someone, it’s never good. Even in times…
— Bart Johnson (@bart_johnson) January 28, 2025
*to HIS social media. Fixed it for you. ????
Also, my comment wasn’t for any individual. Never said a name. It was directed at a certain “type” that I find performative and disingenuous when they post clips of themselves being “amazing” and even add sappy music to enhance it.…— Bart Johnson (@bart_johnson) January 28, 2025
Sooo, he’s totally backtracking on everything he said. WTF?!
We get he doesn’t want to have a reputation of being mean, but if ever there was a time to criticize someone, it would be when you’re defending your sister-in-law against someone she claims sexually harassed her and then started a smear campaign against her! Right? So, what does this mean? Does Bart no longer believe all his in-laws’ allegations? Does he think public opinion is leaning in favor of Justin and he doesn’t want to get caught in the crosshairs? Is he afraid he’ll get dragged into the multimillion dollar suit? What the heck is going on?
Innerestingly, when responding to a user who called him out for not directly apologizing to Justin, Bart may have shed some light about why he was apologizing for his initial comments in the first place — and it has nothing to do with who’s right or wrong in the legal battle. Seemingly admitting some of the comments WERE about the director, Bart said:
“I find those type of podcasts phony. I do. That’s not a crime. But I do feel bad rippin on them. That’s literally all I said. But… Just like you and all the toxic and hatful comments I get from his fans wishing me and my children harm and calling me all the vile names you can imagine, it’s not a crime. People are free to do so and I’m not mad. I get it. It IS ironic, tho. Definitely ironic.”
Now I’m gonna get sued? ???? for what? I find those type of podcasts phony. I do. That’s not a crime. But I do feel bad rippin on them. That’s literally all I said. But… Just like you and all the toxic and hatful comments I get from his fans wishing me and my children harm and…
— Bart Johnson (@bart_johnson) January 29, 2025
Maybe this apology was published to try to shut down the “hateful” comments from trolls? We can understand him wanting to protect his family, even if it’s at the expense of supporting another loved one. But with Blake’s legal battle just heating up, this still seems like a very unusual move! Hmm…
What do you think this is all about, Perezcious readers??
[Image via Nicky Nelson/WENN/MEGA]