Baldoni claims Lively tried to 'ban' him, imposed 'humiliating conditions'
What's the story
Justin Baldoni has accused his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively of trying to keep him out of the film's August premiere.
The allegation is part of Baldoni's $250 million lawsuit against The New York Times filed on Tuesday.
Baldoni—who directed and executive produced the film—accused Lively of deliberately excluding him from the premiere to discredit him.
This comes as Lively sued Baldoni for alleged sexual harassment.
Premiere controversy
Baldoni's team was 'segregated from cast,' 'barred from exclusive after-party'
The lawsuit claimed that Lively only permitted the Jane the Virgin star and his Wayfarer Studios team to attend the premiere after immense pressure, but under "humiliating conditions."
According to the court documents, "The Wayfarer team and their families, including Baldoni and [producer Jamey] Heath, were segregated from the main cast, barred from the exclusive after-party, and forced to organize their own event at additional cost."
Career impact
Baldoni alleged Lively 'stole' film, sidelined him from marketing
Baldoni's lawsuit accused Lively of not just stealing the film but also robbing him and his team of any "real opportunity" to celebrate their hard work.
He claimed this was one of the several moves by Lively that systematically sidelined him from the marketing of his own film.
The 40-year-old director named Lively's husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, in the lawsuit, too, fearing what they were capable of doing to his career and personal life.
Agency denial
Reynolds accused of pressuring Baldoni's agent to drop him
The lawsuit also accused Reynolds of pressuring Baldoni's agent at WME to drop him as a client.
However, WME denied this allegation in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, adding that neither Reynolds nor Lively exerted any pressure on them to drop Baldoni.
Meanwhile, Lively's legal team responded to the suit by saying, "Nothing in this lawsuit changes anything about the claims advanced in Ms. Lively's California Civil Rights Department Complaint, nor her federal complaint."
Legal response
Lively's team encouraged public to read her complaint
Lively's legal team urged the public to read her complaint in full.
"We look forward to addressing each and every one of Wayfarer's allegations in court," they said.
After Baldoni sued The Times for alleged libel and invasion of privacy under false light, Lively filed a second lawsuit against him.
The 37-year-old actor claimed that Baldoni caused her "severe emotional distress and pain, humiliation, embarrassment, belittlement, frustration, and mental anguish" apart from lost wages.