The New York Times wants OUT of the legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni!
Back in December, the 41-year-old director, along with publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel and others, sued the publication for libel, false light invasion of privacy, promissory fraud, and breach of implied-in-fact contract in December. This came after The New York Times published the article “We Can Bury Anyone: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine,” which detailed the 37-year-old actress’ complaint in which she claimed he and his team orchestrated a smear campaign against her to destroy her reputation after she spoke up about the alleged sexual harassment she experienced while working on It Ends With Us.
However, Justin has vehemently denied the allegations and sued her and Ryan Reynolds for $400 million in return, insisting she was the one who launched a smear campaign against him — not the other way around. He also alleged that the couple used their star power to take over the movie from him. Regarding The New York Times, the actor alleged they “cherry-picked” communication and omitted context to mislead readers and twist the narrative in her favor. For this, Justin wants $250 million.
Related: Blake Lively LOSES! Court Agrees With Justin Baldoni About These Texts…
Now, the outlet wants to be removed from the lawsuit! According to Deadline, The New York Times officially filed a motion to dismiss the libel suit in New York federal court on Friday. It defended the reporting of Blake’s accusations against Justin, insisting it was fair and accurate! The court documents said:
“The Wayfarer Parties’ FAC tells a one-sided tale that has garnered plenty of headlines. But The Times does not belong in this dispute. Over the course of their 224-page First Amended Complaint (“FAC”) (plus an added 168-page timeline), the Wayfarer Parties breathlessly tell their side of an ongoing Hollywood drama involving actors Blake Lively (“Lively”) and Justin Baldoni (“Baldoni”), the stars of the film It Ends With Us. The FAC has, to some extent, achieved its obvious purpose; the Wayfarer Parties’ story has been reported by countless news outlets during the last few weeks. What the FAC has not done, however, is plead a viable claim against The Times.”
Hmm.
Justin and co most likely would disagree with all this — but they have yet to respond to the new move! A spokesperson for The New York Times doubled down on the request to dismiss, telling Us Weekly that “this case should never have been brought against” the publication:
“Blake Lively raised serious concerns about the way she was treated on the set and after the movie’s release. We did exactly what news organizations should do: we informed the public of the complaint she filed with the California Civil Rights Department. Mr. Baldoni’s misbegotten campaign against The Times — questioning our ethics, attempting to discredit our reporting, filing a baseless lawsuit — will not silence us.”
Clearly, The New York Times is not backing down on this matter! And they are getting the support of a certain someone in their fight against Justin! It shouldn’t surprise anyone, but Blake is standing by the outlet! A rep for the Gossip Girl alum slammed Justin and his “billionaire backer Steve Sorowitz” for their “meritless claims” in a statement to Deadline following the filing:
“In its motion to dismiss, the New York Times correctly calls out Justin Baldoni’s lawsuit for what it is: a shameless PR document that has no business in a court of law. For years, Baldoni urged men to listen to and believe women. But when a woman spoke out about his behavior, he and his billionaire backer Steve Sorowitz used a social media combat plan’ to scorch earth and try to ‘bury’ and ‘destroy’ her, along with the media who reports on it. These bullying tactics will not survive in court, and everyone should see their meritless claims for what they are.”
We’ll have to see if The New York Times will get their way…
Thoughts, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments below!
[Image via TODAY/CinemaBlend/YouTube]
