Blake Lively’s publicist, Leslie Sloane, has spoken out after Justin Baldoni’s lawyer shared his plans to file a countersuit that will include allegations that Sloane planted stories in the press.
After Lively’s explosive lawsuit — which accused Baldonia, 40, of sexual harassment on set It ends with us and subsequent vindictive smear campaign — the actor’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, has revealed that he is preparing to file a countersuit that he says will “shock everyone,” according to Daily Mail. The media has reported that Freedman intends to file a motion as soon as the courts reopen in 2025.
Lively’s publicist is now dismissing one of the reported claims in the upcoming lawsuit.
According to Daily Mail’In the report, Baldoni’s countersuit will claim that the subpoena messages included in Lively’s lawsuit were presented out of context, and alleges that Lively’s filing was a ploy to rebuild her image after the negative press she received during It ends with us press tour.
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The British outlet also reported that Baldoni’s counterclaim will include specific allegations about Lively’s PR team, led by Sloane, who allegedly claims Sloane planted the stories to paint the actor-director in a bad light and run a smear campaign against him — not the other way around. according to Lively’s complaint.
Sloane denies the claims. She says that she did not start any stories about the complaints of the staff on the set of the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel, and in fact she was informed that the media found out about them through a relative of a member of Baldoni’s PR team.
Blake Lively; Justin Baldoni.
Lia Toby/Getty; John Nacion/Variety via Getty
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“On 8/11 I was contacted by Sara Nathan (Melissa Nathan’s sister) forwarding an anonymous tip received by Page Six regarding allegations of HR complaints on set It ends with us,” the publicist told PEOPLE in a statement. (Baldoni’s crisis representative Melissa Nathan is named in Lively’s lawsuit and accused of participating in an alleged effort to smear her Gossip Girl reputation alum earlier this year.)
“After that, I was contacted by various media outlets with inquiries about allegations of human resources complaints,” Sloane continued. “When contacted, I responded to reporters’ questions by referring them to Wayfarer or Sony for information on human resources complaints.”
“It’s clear that Mr. Baldoni and his Wayfarer Associates are suggesting that I started the press stories about the HR complaints on set, which is false,” the publicist continued, before urging people to read both Lively’s complaint and the complaint they filed by Jonesworks LLC and Stephanie Jones (the latter who previously employed Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel), “which provides details of the campaign against my client.”
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Publicist Leslie Sloane.
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Baldoni’s attorney confirmed to Deadline on Dec. 28 that a counterclaim is planned.
“I won’t talk about when or how many lawsuits we will file, but when we do file our first lawsuit, it will shock everyone who was manipulated into believing a patently false story,” Freedman said in a statement to Deadline.
“It will be supported by real evidence and will tell the real story,” he added. “In over 30 years of practice, I have never seen this level of unethical behavior intentionally fueled by media manipulation.”
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Lively, 37, sued Baldoni on Dec. 20, claiming in an 80-page lawsuit that after she reported sexual harassment on set It ends with us, the actor-director retaliated by orchestrating an orchestrated smear campaign to tarnish her image.
In the complaint, which comes months after rumors of a feud between the actors surfaced, the actress makes dozens of allegations against Baldoni (who starred in, produced and directed the film), members of the film’s production team and individuals allegedly involved. in an alleged smear campaign against her.
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Blake Lively; Justin Baldoni.
Jeff Spicer/Getty; Dia Dipasupil/Getty
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The complaint includes allegations that Baldoni “improvised” kisses and other physically intimate moments in the film, attempted to add “gratuitous sexual content,” made inappropriate sexual comments and, along with another named producer, showed a “shocking lack of boundaries” by entering the actress’ trailer “uninvited.” while she was undressed.
The complaint also states that the front It ends with us‘ Premiere in August, Baldoni, fearing that Lively would go public with her negative experiences on the set, hired a team to “boost” his credibility and “eviscerate” his colleague’s reputation.
Freedman said in a statement to PEOPLE that Lively complained to “repair her negative reputation.” He also said her claims were “false, outrageous and willfully maligned with intent to cause public injury”.
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