An intimacy coordinator has weighed in on the legal dispute between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni after watching the leaked video of a scene from It Ends with Us.
Blake Lively was starring alongside actor and Justin Baldoni for the film It Ends with Us and the pair are now entangled in a legal battle.
In December last year, Lively filed a legal complaint against Baldoni for sexual harassment as well as for allegedly taking part in a 'smear campaign' against her.
Baldoni has denied these claims and launched his own lawsuit against her and her husband Ryan Reynolds.
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Most recently, Baldoni and his team have shared a video of the takes from a scene where Lively and Baldoni’s characters are slow dancing.
Lively’s lawsuit points to this scene as an example of Baldoni’s alleged misconduct.
The video, released by Baldoni, shows the three takes from the scene which they claim is the entirety of the footage shot for the scene.
Lively alleges Baldoni 'leaned forward and slowly dragged his lips from her ear and down her neck as he said, 'It smells so good'', and that Baldoni was 'caressing Lively with his mouth in a way that had nothing to do with their roles'.
Intimacy coordinator Mia Schachter spoke to the Hollywood Reporter about the video that was shared and given her expert opinion on it.
She said: “He is trying to kiss her, and they clearly haven’t discussed that ahead of time, and she keeps pulling away and clearly doesn’t want to do that.”
She also reflected on Lively’s reaction. She continued: “Even though she’s Blake Lively and can say no and isn’t going to be fired for speaking her mind the way that somebody else might fear, she still has to keep working with him and keep the peace and play nice.
“I can just see her trying to stay lighthearted and in good spirits about it and not upset him or anybody, and not waste anybody’s time. But of course, she is trapped between a rock and a hard place. I can see her appeasing him and trying to keep a smile on her face.”
Schachter admitted that they were surprised Baldoni’s team leaked this video as she claimed it doesn’t vindicate Baldoni in the way he may have hoped.
She said this shows that a kiss was not discussed ahead of time, adding: “For an actor, if they know the plan ahead of time and they’re not caught off guard, they’re often open to trying things.
“The problem here was that none of this was planned or discussed.”
Baldoni has categorically denied Lively's claims.
LADBible Group has previously reached out to Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively's representatives for comment.
Topics: Blake Lively, Celebrity, Justin Baldoni
Gerrard Kaonga