Justin Baldoni is “ecstatic” after finally ending his messy legal battle tied to co-star Blake Lively, and It Ends With Us.
Baldoni Ecstatic
After the news broke about the Baldoni-Lively settlement, Baldoni’s lawyer gave a statement.
Bryan Freedman shared that Baldoni and producer Jamie Heath are “very pleased” about how the dispute ended.
He shared with Extra, “I can’t talk about the terms of the settlement, but what I can tell you is that he is ecstatic, that both Jamie and Justin are ecstatic at the results of this and the settlement itself. They are very pleased with where this ended up.”
Freedman also pointed out that Baldoni was no longer personally involved in the litigation when settlement talks began.
“This is not his settlement. He’s already out of the case by the time this settlement discussion even starts. Justin Baldoni is not a party, and that’s what gets forgotten a lot.”
He added, “If you’re looking at this settlement as a win or a loss or anything else, I think he just looks at it as a logical ending to a case that he was already out of.”
As for what Baldoni plans to do moving forward? Freedman had an answer for that, too.
“Justin wants to help people who have experienced similar experiences when they felt they were accused of something they did not do. And to be a leader in helping other people in that way. I know that [Baldoni] will help people who have experienced similar trauma.”
He added that Baldoni will continue to be an “advocate for women’s rights and advocate for the domestic violence survivor community, which has been unfortunately overlooked by this battle that went on.”
The Settlement
According to Bryan Freedman, the case had shifted quite a bit before each side entered settlement talks.
He shared, “Ten of the 13 claims were gone as a result of the summary judgment motion. Five individuals were out of the case. What remained was really Blake Lively versus It Ends With Us, the movie LLC, the agency group and Wayfarer Studios.”
Baldoni is the co-founder of Wayfarer Studios.
The legal battle finally met its end on Monday, May 4th. Attorneys for both sides confirmed a settlement, and with perfect timing, too.
The case was scheduled to go to trial in New York less than two weeks from the settlement date.
Both parties released a joint statement about the settlement. They claimed It Ends With Us is still “a source of pride” and reaffirmed support for domestic violence survivors.
The statement read,” We acknowledge the process presented challenges and recognize concerns raised by Ms. Lively deserved to be heard. We remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments.”
The Legal Battle
The legal battle started back in December 2024, when Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment on set. She also claimed he participated in a campaign to damage her reputation.
Baldoni denied both of the allegations, later filing a $400 million countersuit in January 2025, which was later dismissed in June 2025.
In April 2026, U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman dismissed several of Lively’s claims, including sexual harassment, defamation, and civil conspiracy. Liman allowed the retaliation-related claims to continue. A
All in all, only three of Lively’s claims from her lawsuit (breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation) were set to go to court on May 18th.
According to TMZ, Baldoni and Lively didn’t earn any money in the settlement, though their legal teams earned a combined $60 million.