BLAKE LIVELY BILLS BALDONI $8 MILLION — AND THE JUDGE AGREES
After winning her legal battle with her It Ends With Us co-star, Blake's demanding he cover her massive attorney fees for the year-plus court war.
Blake Lively just handed Justin Baldoni and his Wayfarer Studios a bill they won't forget: $8,035,040.88 in legal fees. According to Deadline and Variety, a federal judge has ruled that Baldoni and the studio must pay up for Blake's defense costs in their defamation lawsuit against her — which she won after accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of It Ends With Us and orchestrating an online smear campaign.
The actress called out what she says were Baldoni's "scorched-earth litigation tactics designed to drain Lively's resources," per Deadline. The year-plus legal battle was exhausting (and expensive!), but Blake stood her ground through the whole thing — and now the court's backing her play.
This marks a major victory for Lively in the messy fallout from the 2024 film. Baldoni filed the defamation suit last year, but Blake's harassment allegations and the mounting public support behind her ultimately won the day. The $8 million tab is a hefty price for Baldoni and Wayfarer to swallow, but the judge sided with Blake on the fees.
It's a mic-drop moment for Blake after months in the spotlight over this whole saga. She went toe-to-toe with her director and walked away victorious — with his wallet a whole lot lighter.
Sources · Variety · Deadline