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Blake Lively sues 'It Ends With Us' co-star alleging sexual harassment and retaliation
Isabela Ferrer and Blake Lively onstage during the "It Ends With Us" UK Gala Screening on Aug. 8, in London.
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Topline:
Actor Blake Lively is suing her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, alleging sexual harassment and retaliation, according to a complaint filed Friday.
The complaint: The lawsuit, a copy of which was obtained by the New York Times, includes details of a meeting convened to address a hostile on set environment, where Baldoni, Lively and other attendees talked about certain inappropriate conduct allegedly perpetrated by Baldoni and lead producer Jamey Heath.
The alleged conduct included the showing of nude videos and images of women to Lively.
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The lawsuit also alleges that Baldoni launched a smear campaign to discredit Lively in the event that the actor goes public with these allegations.
"It Ends With Us": The film is an adaptation of Colleen Hoover's best-selling book about a woman's abusive marriage. The blockbuster, with a reported budget of $25 million, earned more than $350 million in global ticket sales.
Background: The lawsuit comes less than a decade after the #MeToo movement gained global attention starting in 2017 that led to the conviction of influential Hollywood powerbrokers like Harvey Weinstein.
What's next: LAist reached out to Wayfarer Studios, the production outfit owned by Baldoni, for a response.
His lawyer told Variety that the suit contains "categorically false accusations."
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