Justin Baldoni’s attorney refuses to let Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds bully him or his client into silence!
As you’ve probably been following, the power couple filed for a gag order request earlier this week to stop Bryan Freedman from attacking the Gossip Girl alum in the media amid her and Justin’s ongoing legal battle. They argued the attorney’s comments — and even releasing that on-set footage from It Ends With Us — would threaten her ability to get a fair trial. That is not the only reason, though. Ryan also reportedly pushed for the protective order because he wants to protect his upcoming projects… and Blake, of course.
Related: Justin Baldoni’s Wife Breaks Her Silence Amid Messy Blake Lively Legal Drama!
However, Justin and Bryan are not standing for their latest tactics! The attorney fired back in a statement to Us Weekly on Saturday, saying:
“The irony is not lost on anyone that Ms. Lively is so petrified of the truth that she has moved to gag it. The immense power that she wielded in Hollywood built on pure fear of her husband and their powerful friends came to an end the moment Ms. Lively planned a mass distribution of a disturbingly false and well-calculated hit piece in The New York Times.”
And we all know why Blake and Ryan might be nervous right now! Justin’s next move is to release every single receipt he has on a website. This could spell trouble for the actress…
According to Freedman, Blake accused Justin of sexual harassment “with the sole intent to ruin the lives of innocent individuals.” Not only that, he claims she “went the extra mile to place blame on a fictitious smear campaign” on the Jane The Virgin alum after facing intense backlash due to her past rude behavior and “simply could not accept that the public had organically seen through her facade.” Damn. He continued:
“When you accuse innocent individuals of something so disturbing as sexual harassment without thinking of the destruction it would cause to not only them but the entire domestic violence community, this is where accountability for such mean-spirited actions must be taken.”
Freedman noted they “will always respect the court” and whatever decision they make — but what they won’t do is “be bullied by those suggesting we cannot defend our clients with pure, unedited facts.” He concluded:
“All we want is for people to see the actual text messages that directly contradict her allegations, video footage that clearly shows there was no sexual harassment and all the other powerful evidence that directly contradicts any false allegations of sexual harassment and subsequent smear campaign. It seems that in a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
At this time, Blake has not responded to his statement, but she must not be too happy about it! Thoughts, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments!
[Image via TODAY/Variety/YouTube, MEGA/WENN]