Blake Lively's legal team has emphasized the lawsuit against Justin Baldoni is not simply a '"feud" arising from "creative differences"'.
Last month, Lively filed a federal lawsuit in New York accusing It Ends with Us co-star and director Baldoni of sexual harassment and 'trying to destroy her reputation' - accusations of which Baldoni's team has branded 'categorically false'.
Since then, a voice message allegedly recorded by Baldoni has been leaked claiming he was 'sent to the basement' during the movie's premiere.
The leaked recording
Shared with The Megyn Kelly Show, a voice - allegedly that of Baldoni - can be heard saying: "On what could have been one of the most beautiful nights of my life career wise, I literally was sent to the basement with all my friends and family for over an hour because I wasn't allowed to be seen, she didn't want me anywhere near her or the rest of the cast."
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The voice does not name the person who referred to as 'she' in the recording, but continues: "We start laughing because of the ridiculousness of this whole thing.
"I was in the basement with the people that love me the most and we were all joyful and laughing cos none of that s**t matters, none of it."
Amid the recording being shared publicly, Lively's legal team issued a new statement.
Lively's legal team's response
In a statement shared with People, Lively's legal team accuses Baldoni, his production studio Wayfarer Studios and associates of engaging in 'unlawful, retaliatory astroturfing' against Lively 'for simply trying to protect herself and others on a film set,' adding 'their response to the lawsuit has been to launch more attacks against Lively since her filing'.
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The statement emphasizes Lively's 'serious claims of sexual harassment and retaliation' are 'backed by concrete facts' and 'this is not a "feud" arising from "creative differences" or a "he said/she said" situation' and Lively's team will 'prove [this] in litigation'.
"Sexual harassment and retaliation are illegal in every workplace and in every industry," the statement continues. "A classic tactic to distract from allegations of this type of misconduct is to ‘blame the victim’ by suggesting that they invited the conduct, brought it on themselves, misunderstood the intentions, or even lied."
Lively's team note 'another classic tactic is to reverse the victim and offender and suggest that the offender is actually the victim'.
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The team warns: "These concepts normalize and trivialize allegations of serious misconduct."
The statement resolves: "Most importantly, media statements are not a defense to Ms. Lively’s legal claims. We will continue to prosecute her claims in federal court, where the rule of law determines who prevails, not hyperbole and threats."
UNILAD has contacted representatives for Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively for comment.
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni
Poppy Bilderbeck