Blake Lively’s famous friends are silent as Justin Baldoni legal battle continues

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(NewsNation) — Blake Lively’s phone is awfully quiet these days.

When the actress first filed a sexual harassment complaint in December, accusing her “It Ends With Us” co-star and director Justin Baldoni of harassment and retaliation, many of her famous friends and co-stars lined up to defend her.

Blake Lively’s famous friends defended her

In December after Blake first filed, Jenny Slate, another co-star in the movie told “Today”: “As Blake Lively’s castmate and friend, I voice my support as she takes action against those reported to have planned and carried out an attack on her reputation.”

Brandon Sklenar, also in the movie, took to Instagram stories to share a link to the New York Times article detailing Lively’s claims, tagged Lively and wrote, “For the love of God read this.” 

Colleen Hoover, the author of the book, “It Ends With Us,” also posted a link to the NYT article in her Instagram stories saying: “@blakelively, you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met. Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt.”

And others, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Amy Schumer and her “Another Simple Favor” director Paul Feig, also gave public support — as did her “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” co-stars America Ferrara, Amber Tamblyn and Alexis Bledel — who posted a joint statement in Instagram reading: “As Blake’s friends and sisters for over 20 years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights back against the reported campaign waged to destroy her reputation.

“Throughout the filming of “‘t Ends With Us,’ we saw her summon the courage to ask for a safe workplace for herself and her colleagues on set, and we are appalled to read the evidence of a premeditated and vindictive effort that ensued to discredit her voice. Most upsetting is the unabashed exploitation of domestic violence survivors’ stories to silence a woman who asked for safety. The hypocrisy is astounding.”

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Blake Lively’s defenders are quiet after Justin Baldoni publishes website

But since Baldoni and his lawyer, Bryan Freedman, published the website — with the full amended complaint and a timeline that included detailed call logs, messages and links to unedited filming — that refuted all of Lively’s claims, the actresses’ supporters have gone quiet.

Hoover took a break from Instagram, and when she returned, had removed all images and posts about Lively and Baldoni.

Sklenar, Slate, Schumer and others don’t have any mention of Lively on their Instagram anymore — and while Ferrara and Tamblyn still have the original post showing their support for Lively on their Instagram, an “official” account linked to Bledel has nothing.

Feig is also quiet in the run-up to “Another Simple Favor” premiering March 7. The famed director posted a Lively-free promo for the movie on Instagram last week — and tagged everyone but Lively in the post. 

Bestie Taylor Swift, co-star Anna Kendrick stay silent

As I reported in January, Lively’s BFF Taylor Swift (who was mentioned twice in the lawsuit by Baldoni), is keeping her distance and is “annoyed” she was dragged into the mess, and Lively’s “Another Simple Favor” co-star Anna Kendrick wants nothing to do with her.

Lively is expected to make her only appearance to promote this next movie at SXSW for the premiere, but nothing else has been scheduled.

  • Ice Spice, from left, Ashley Avignone Taylor Swift and Blake Lively react during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/David Becker)
  • Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively are seen on the set of 'It Ends with Us.'
  • Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively

‘It Ends With Us’ drama continues amid Lively, Baldoni lawsuits

The mess is unlikely to end soon as I reported Baldoni will refuse to settle and wants a jury to hear his case. As one of his friends told me: “Justin’s career has been ruined — he was immediately dropped from every project he had on the books the second Blake accused him of sexual harassment, and he’s furious. He may not ever make another dime — and he wants compensation for a career that has been stolen from him. He’s not going to settle. He wants everything in front of a jury for public record and wants to be fully exonerated as well as compensated for this travesty.”

In another twist, a resurfaced video of Lively is painting the actress in an even more unflattering light, as the video shows her confessing she “poisoned” the cast of Gossip Girl against Penn Badgley, in a resurfaced interview from 2009.

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In the video, Lively admitted:  “‘At first I was so upset that they hired him,’ she told Glamour magazine. ‘I actually poisoned the whole cast against him. But then they noticed that he wasn’t a jerk and was actually a really nice, charming person… Almost immediately I realized that too, but it took me about a week to admit it.”

Badgely isn’t the only “Gossip Girl” cast member Lively had issues with. Last month a TikTok video of an undated “Gossip Girl” panel surfaced in which Lively cruelly waived towards Leighton Meester and said, “Some of us started in a cage.” Meester was born when her mother was incarcerated and was raised by her grandparents.

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