Blake Lively did not receive a single dollar from Justin Baldoni after settling her lawsuit against his film production company Wayfarer, the Daily Mail can reveal. Despite claiming she lost nearly $300 million in earnings and income after being the victim of an alleged 'smear campaign,' no money changed hands in the final agreement.
Sources in Baldoni's camp said they were 'ecstatic' with how the case was resolved, and now it's easy to see why: they didn't have to pay anything. The shock twist came after the case was settled with just two weeks before it was due to go to trial in New York.
In a joint statement, both sides said that the filming of the movie 'presented challenges' and that Lively's 'concerns deserved to be heard.' However, there was no apology, only a call for everyone to move on 'in peace'.
The lack of a financial settlement is a sharp contrast to Lively's requests to be compensated for the damage to her reputation and film career. The former 'Gossip Girl' star claimed in court documents that she lost as much as $40.5 million due to being branded a 'mean girl' and a 'bully'. She claimed in court filings that she missed out on up to $87.8 million in lost acting and endorsement opportunities. Up to $143.5 million more was supposedly lost in profits from Lively's haircare and alcohol range after the controversy over the film.
Baldoni's lawyers called these claims 'pie in the sky' figures and said that Lively's reputation was already damaged due to her own actions. It is unclear who pays the multi-million legal bills for each side, however Lively can count on support from her husband Ryan Reynolds, who is worth a reported $400 million. Baldoni has been supported throughout the trial by his friend, entrepreneur Steve Sarowitz, who co-founded Wayfarer and is worth up to $3.4 billion through his payment processing company. Baldoni's personal net worth is estimated to be between $4 million and $8 million thanks to his share of the profits from It Ends With Us, which made more than $350 million in worldwide box office receipts.
The Daily Mail understands that Lively was the sticking point to a potential settlement even though her team were urging her to end the case months ago. According to Mitchell Jackson, a PR who represents controversial figures like the influencer Clavicular and right wing provocateur Candace Owens, Lively's team likely wanted to settle because she had far more to lose than Baldoni.
'Could it have gotten any worse for Blake Lively?' he said. 'The only way would have been to go to trial. Her career is already in a coffin and a trial would have thrown the nails in it and put it in the ground. The biggest mistake she made was when she got his talent agency to drop him, referring to the decision by WME to split with Baldoni in 2024. Then had no work, so he had nothing to lose and he could burn the house down. Look at Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. He had nothing to lose either.'
Lively's celebrity friends will be 'relieved' as they 'don't want to be dragged into it' any more than they have already been. But it will be a hard road back for Lively herself, Jackson said.
Their joint statement in full: 'The end product - the movie 'It Ends With Us' - is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life. Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors - and all survivors - is a goal that we stand behind. 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. It is our sincere hope that this brings closure and allows all involved to move forward constructively and in peace, including a respectful environment online.'
'It's clear Blake Lively doesn't have a sense of humor about herself and the only way forward is to have a sense of humor, but she won't do it,' Jackson said. 'She wants to play the victim card but she's not the victim. The way to recover, if she was smart, she would fire her Hollywood PR people because she has approached a 21st century problem with a 20th century way of handling it. She should do some outrageous things to rehab herself like going on SNL and play Pam Bondi. She needs to make fun of herself. Do an ad campaign with Amber Heard as it would make people's heads spin. She needs to change the conversation about herself.'
According to Jackson, Baldoni is in a 'tougher spot' given the dearth of acting jobs and few people wanting to take a risk on him. But the best solution for both of them would be to make a sequel to It Ends With Us as it would be 'huge', Jackson said. Unfortunately, Baldoni's lawyers have already poured cold water on that idea.
