Pop superstar Taylor Swift called “It Ends With Us” actor Justin Baldoni an expletive in a text message with Blake Lively, according to messages unsealed Tuesday as part of an ongoing legal battle.
The messages were unsealed as part of Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni, her co-star in the 2024 film “It Ends With Us,” Wayfarer Studios and others, litigation that has been going on for over a year.
According to the court document, which Lively’s lawyers filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Swift wrote, “I think this bitch knows something is coming because he’s gotten out his tiny violin.”
In the motion, Lively’s lawyers confirmed the quoted language but disputed the defense’s assertion that it was said while Swift and Lively were discussing — on Dec. 4 and 5, 2024 — a forthcoming New York Times article that reported that Baldoni and the CEO of Wayfarer had launched a “retaliatory ‘smear campaign’” against Lively.
Representatives for Swift did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.
Swift licensed a song for “It Ends With Us” but was not otherwise involved in the film, Swift’s spokesperson said last year, when there was an attempt to subpoena her as a possible witness in the trial.
Sigrid McCawley, a member of Lively’s legal team, said Tuesday that the new filing includes “damning” statements about Baldoni from other people.
“The newly unsealed, damning documents show the consistent reaction numerous women, cast, crew, executives, partners, co-host and even his own PR team had working with Justin Baldoni,” McCawley said.
Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni, said in a statement released by Wayfarer's public relations team that they are confident Baldoni's name will be cleared.
"As stated all along, and reflected in our clients motions, as well as in messages from Sony discussing Ms. Lively’s behaviors, the evidence does not support the claims as a matter of law," Freedman said.
Tuesday’s filing by Lively's lawyers deals with the re-filing of public versions of exhibits that were part of an earlier motion by Lively’s attorneys opposing a summary judgment in the case.
An attorney for Baldoni previously called the allegations in the lawsuit “completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious.”
Lively first filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department on Dec. 20, 2024, that accused Baldoni of sexual harassment during filming of “It Ends With Us,” as well as retaliation against Lively after she raised issues about his on-set behavior.
She filed a federal civil lawsuit against Baldoni, who is also a co-founder and co-owner of Wayfarer Studios and who directed “It Ends With Us,” on Dec. 31, 2024. In February, she filed an amended complaint against Baldoni, the company, the company’s CEO and others.
Baldoni filed a countersuit against Lively seeking $400 million, but a federal judge dismissed it in June and formally ended it in November after an amended complaint was not filed by a court-set deadline.
Lively’s amended complaint, which does not name a dollar amount, seeks compensatory and punitive damages. It alleges that there was a “multi-tiered plan” by Baldoni and his team to destroy her reputation.
In “It Ends With Us,” Lively plays Lily Bloom, a woman who moves to Boston with a dream of opening a flower shop and marries neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid, played by Baldoni. The film explores Bloom’s decision to break a cycle of domestic abuse and divorce him.
