Blake Lively’s Email Calling Justin Baldoni a “Clown” Revealed in Court Filing
By Alexus Mosley
Blake Lively wasn’t holding back behind the scenes of It Ends With Us.
A newly revealed court filing has brought to light a candid email Lively sent during post-production of the Colleen Hoover adaptation, amid her ongoing legal battle with co-star and director Justin Baldoni. In the email, obtained by E! News, Lively reached out to filmmaker and longtime collaborator Ben Affleck, seeking his feedback on her version of the film.
In the May 2024 message, Lively detailed what she described as a turbulent creative process, claiming she “ended up rewriting and restructuring the entire script,” despite the film being officially credited to writer Christy Hall. She also alleged that she was forced to “direct the movie” through Baldoni, whom she referred to as a “chaotic clown ‘director’/actor/producer/financier/studio head.”
“Yes that’s all the same person,” she wrote.
The actress went further, alleging that Baldoni’s team was “in a cult” and citing “wild HR issues and beyond,” adding that navigating his “taste, ego and preexisting decisions” made the process especially difficult. Lively explained that she was entering a “bake off” situation with Baldoni, where both edits of the film were competing for the final cut. She asked Affleck to watch her version if he had “1:58 of free time,” even suggesting his then-wife Jennifer Lopez and his children could join for the viewing.
Throughout the email, Lively emphasized there was “zero pressure,” while also expressing the emotional toll the project took on her. “This movie nearly killed me,” she wrote, praising Affleck as one of the few people she trusted to offer prescriptive and insightful feedback. She also noted that Matt Damon planned to watch her cut, joking, “Can you believe Jason Bourne is watching my movie?!?!”
In response to the filing, Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman pushed back on Lively’s claims, stating that the evidence does not support her allegations and expressing confidence in the legal process.
Lively’s trial against Baldoni over allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation is set for May.