Ryan Reynolds Breaks Silence and Hints at Struggling in Cryptic Post After Wife Blake Lively Accuses 'It Ends With Us' Co-Star Justin Baldoni of Sexual Harassment
Reynolds has backed his wife in her legal battle with Baldoni.
Dec. 24 2024, Published 8:08 a.m. ET
Ryan Reynolds has finally spoken out just days after his wife, Blake Lively, sued her It Ends With Us co-star for sexual harassment and a smear campaign against her.
The Deadpool & Wolverine actor is said to have been present in a meeting with Lively when she aired her concerns about Baldoni, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Reynolds broke his silence for the first time amid his wife's sexual harassment lawsuit.
Reynolds, 48, took to his Instagram Stories late Monday night to raise awareness for him and Lively's children's charity, Sick Kids Hospital. In the post, the A-lister is dressed up in his well-known Deadpool suit for a short clip also featuring iconic Wonder Woman star Lynda Carter.
The actor admitted the video was shot "during a time I really didn't feel like putting the suit on".
"Thank you @rowlandbb for directing this amazing little piece during a time I really didn't feel like putting the suit on. Thank you @reallyndacarter for your time, grace and talent. Thank you to my daughter for being such a good person despite your dad asking you to swear (for a good cause)," he said.
Lively's lawsuit against her 'It Ends With Us' co-star Baldoni also accuses him of a smear campaign against her.
Last week, Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni, who also directed It Ends With Us, accusing him of sexual harassment and being behind an alleged smear campaign as retaliation for the actress speaking out about his inappropriate behavior on set. In the complaint, the movie star even claims Baldoni "cried" in her dressing room following reports of her looking "old" for the role.
The complaint reads: "(Lively) tried to reassure him that she should look authentic in the scenes depicted in the photos, which were just after her character had been abused by her fictional husband, rather than 'hot.'"
The documents adds the filmmaker "appeared focused on Ms. Lively’s sexual appeal above all else".
It continues: "His lengthy outburst caused a delay in shooting, forcing an emotional scene to be shot haphazardly."
While Lively, 37, is said to have reached out to the film's lead producer, Jamey Heath, to discuss Baldoni’s “unprofessional behavior", Heath “arrived unannounced” at her makeup trailer while the Hollywood star was “topless and having body makeup removed by makeup artists".
The document claims despite Lively asking Heath to "keep his back turned”, she allegedly noticed he “was staring directly at her while she was topless".
Baldoni and Heath are included in Lively's complaint, as is Baldoni's production company Wayfarer Studios and its co-founder Steve Sarowitz. The lawsuit is also against Jed Wallace, Melissa Nathan, and Jennifer Abel, who are accused of attempting to ruin Lively’s reputation amid the chaos.
Baldoni directed and starred in the film alongside Lively.
"I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted," the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants star said after filing the lawsuit.
However, Baldoni's lawyer Bryan Freedman claimed Lively's complain was made to "fix her negative reputation", and added her allegations are "false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt".
Baldoni's publicist, Abel, also spoke out late Monday evening, after text messages between her and crisis management expert Nathan were leaked.
Many of the messages in the lawsuit, obtained by a subpoena, include one exchange in which Nathan states that she can "bury anyone", as they were sent in reply to Abel's text which says Baldoni "wants to feel like (Lively) can be buried".
Abel also writes she is "having reckless thoughts of wanting to plant pieces this week about how horrible Blake is to work with".
In a now-deleted post in a Facebook group for PR and marketing, Abel explained she "never thought the day would come" when she needed to defend herself and called the last few days "interesting and devastating".
Reynolds is said to have been in the meeting when Lively let her complaints about Baldoni and the film known.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
The PR agent revealed she was "notified" Lively's team had been "planting horrible stories" about Baldoni – which is why they "brought on crisis".
She said: "As representatives, we all have to make that choice. So I did that to the best of my ability and felt good about our efforts."
Baldoni, who has since been dropped from his agency WME, is said to have also "improvised physical intimacy" during a scene without discussing it with Lively beforehand.
According to her lawsuit, Baldoni was "discreetly biting and sucking on Ms. Lively's lower lip' during multiple takes", allegedly insisting on reshooting the scene repeatedly despite Lively's clear discomfort.
