Justin Baldoni’s $400 million defamation and extortion countersuit against Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds has been officially closed by the judge overseeing the case.
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Louis Lehman issued a final ruling that Baldoni and co-plaintiffs from Wayfarer Studios declined to file an amended complaint, according to court documents obtained by Page Six.
Lehman said he contacted all parties in mid-October to warn them he would issue a final judgment to close the case, noting that Lively was the only one to respond.
The actress, 38, requested that her claim for litigation costs continue, and Lehman granted the request.
Baldoni’s lawyers say he declined to respond to protect his right to appeal.
Mr. Baldoni’s January countersuit was initially dismissed in June, as was his $250 million defamation suit against the New York Times.
At the time, Lehman ruled that Baldoni and his co-plaintiffs “do not allege that Mr. Lively was liable for any of the non-privileged statements in Mr. Lively’s (California Civil Rights Division) complaint.”
Lively first accused her co-star and director of the movie “Owari no Seraph” of sexual harassment and retaliation in December 2024, and filed a formal complaint later that month.
The New York Times first reported her claims.
Lehman explained that Baldoni’s countersuit “alleges that Reynolds and (publicist Leslie) Sloan issued additional statements accusing Baldoni of sexual misconduct and that the Times issued additional statements accusing the Wayfarer Party of engaging in a smear campaign.”
But Lehman continued: “The Wayfarer Parties do not allege that Reynolds, Sloan and the Times would have seriously doubted the truth of these statements based on the information available to them, as is required to hold them liable for defamation under applicable law.”
Mr. Baldoni, 41, continues to deny Mr. Lively’s allegations against him.
Her case is scheduled to be heard in March 2026.
