Text messages exchanged between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively shed light on the fat-shaming accusations stemming from the production of their movie It Ends with Us.
As part of their bitter legal battle, Baldoni and his legal team released text messages exchanged with his costar, along with an amended version of his $400 million defamation lawsuit against her.
Highlights
- Justin Baldoni and his legal team have released a treasure trove of text messages he exchanged with Blake Lively.
- Messages from February, 2023, revealed Lively's weight being a topic in their conversations.
- Screenshots also revealed Baldoni's response to Lively's concerns about her body.
- Furthermore, Baldoni had allegedly asked her longtime personal trainer how much she weighed.
The director, 41, also shared a timeline starting from 2019 to 2025, which includes emails, WhatsApp exchanges, and other communication related to the making of the movie—adapted from a Colleen Hoover novel.
Messages exchanged between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively shed light on the fat-shaming accusations
Image credits: blakelively
The timeline includes Baldoni’s initial text messages with Lively, which suggested they had a friendly relationship before things turned sour.
In his lawsuit, Baldoni’s legal team revealed that they “grew close” to the point where they would exchange text messages every single day at one point.
Text messages from February 2023 revealed that Lively’s weight became a topic of their conversations.
Image credits: justinbaldoni
February 2023 was the same month Lively and husband, Ryan Reynolds, announced that the actress had given birth to their fourth child, Olin.
In one text message she sent on February 9, 2023, the Gossip Girl alum thanked Baldoni for his “support” and his “friendship.”
The actor then expressed he was “worried” about her, after which Lively joked about wanting to lose 20 lbs before the film’s shooting began.
Baldoni gave a thumbs-down to the message.
Lively's weight was discussed in their text messages from February 2023
Image credits: blakelively
About a week later, the mother, who was fresh off baby #4’s birth, asked Baldoni if the filming of their intimate scenes could be pushed towards the end of their schedule.
“What’s the chance we can do body scenes at the end of the schedule,” she asked in a text exchange from February 17, 2023.
Baldoni replied, saying he couldn’t give her a confirmation on the scheduling immediately, but he went on to assure her that she would “look amazing” in the scenes.
The actress indicated wanting to lose a few pounds after the birth of her fourth child
Image credits: Lawsuit documents
“Anything you are insecure about, we will talk through and get creative together and make you comfortable,” he replied.
He asserted that he didn’t want his costar and mother-of-four to be stressing about her body, calling it the “last thing” she needed.
His assurance appeared to contrast Lively's accusations about Baldoni finding “back channel ways of criticizing her body and her weight.”
Concerned about her weight, the actress asked if their “body scenes” could be pushed
Image credits: Lawsuit documents
Subsequent messages from February 2023 revealed that Lively had introduced her personal trainer, Don Saladino, to Baldoni for advice on “nutrition and exercise” and “making special accommodations” for his back injury.
Baldoni and Saladino went on to exchange text messages of their own. The duo were particularly focused on training for the actor-director’s back muscles for a scene in which he had to lift Lively up.
As their conversation progressed, Baldoni went on to ask the trainer about Lively’s weight, which he claimed was in “good faith.”
Image credits: Netflix
The query became a point of contention between Baldoni and Lively, with even her Reynolds getting involved.
In his $250 million libel lawsuit against the New York Times, Baldoni accused Reynolds of calling him to the couple’s New York City penthouse and “berating” him for “fat-shaming” his wife.
“How dare you f-----g ask about my wife’s weight?” the Deadpool actor was quoted asking. “What’s wrong with you?”
Legal filings claimed Baldoni had asked her longtime personal trainer, Don Saladino, about her weight for a lift scene
Image credits: blakelively
“The confrontation that followed was so aggressive that Baldoni felt compelled to offer repeated apologies,” the lawsuit alleged.
Following the clash, Lively refused to be a part of the lift scene, and Reynolds demanded its removal from the script.
Baldoni then “continued to bend to [Lively’s] will” to “rebuild rapport” and work without conflict, his lawsuit stated.
Image credits: Netflix
In her own lawsuit, Lively pointed to another incident where she told the actor about being sick with step throat, after which he put her in touch with a health coach for some advice on gut health after taking antibiotics.
The actress said in her lawsuit that this was another way to subtly fat-shame her because the health coach turned out to be a weight-loss specialist.
While tensions were brewing between the two costars, they nevertheless shared some seemingly good moments here and there—with one of them being in connection with Lively’s birthday.
Despite tensions, Baldoni's lawsuit said he tried to “rebuild rapport” between them
Image credits: Lawsuit documents
The Jane the Virgin star texted a lengthy message to the actress on her 36th birthday, August 25, 2023. He not only sent her birthday wishes but also praised her for being “so fantastic in the film.”
In a reply that came a few days later, the Age of Adaline actress thanked him for his “thoughtful” gift of a matcha machine.
It was in December last year when the Lively-Baldoni conflict escalated, with the actress filing a legal complaint accusing Baldoni of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment during the movie’s production, and orchestrating a retaliatory social media campaign to tarnish her reputation.
The Jane the Virgin actor praised his costar for being “fantastic in the film” while wishing her on her birthday
Image credits: justinbaldoni
On December 31, Baldoni filed a libel lawsuit against The New York Times for its coverage of Lively’s allegations. Meanwhile, the actress sued Baldoni in the Southern District of New York the very same day.
Baldoni’s attorneys fired back with another $400 million lawsuit on January 16, accusing the actress and Reynolds of numerous charges.
The first court hearing in the feud took place on Monday, February 3, where the attorneys for both sides met in person for the first time in federal court. Neither Lively nor Baldoni were present for the pre-trial conference.
A federal judge said the initial March 2026 trial-start date could be pushed forward due to the press coverage, and they asked the attorneys to avoid making public statements about the case that could prejudice a jury.
“The video that was released says all you need to know about the lies she's told with all this,” one social media user said
