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Justin Baldoni’s lawyer claims Blake Lively shared an unscripted, impromptu kiss in newly released footage of a deleted scene.
The one-minute clip, released as evidence in Wayfarer’s summary judgment motion filed on November 13, shows Baldoni and Lively, who play Lyle and Lily, briefly kissing during a hospital scene.
In their filing, Baldoni’s lawyers claim that Lively “directed” the scene, which was shot in May 2023, and that “although there was no kissing in the script, she herself wrote into the script that her character kissed Baldoni’s character in every take.”
Lively, 38, has accused director and co-star Baldoni, 41, of sexual harassment and retaliation, which she denies.
As previously reported, Lively met with Baldoni and producers in January 2024 as she prepared to resume filming for It Ends With Us after the Hollywood strike and laid out a long list of conditions for her return to work. According to Lively’s complaint, one of the conditions was that there be “no impromptu kisses.”
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Mr. Baldoni’s lawyers have suggested that the newly released video shows Mr. Lively allegedly sharing an unscripted kiss before the meeting. PEOPLE has reached out to Lively’s representatives for comment.
In a $400 million lawsuit filed by Mr. Baldoni in January (later dismissed by a judge), Mr. Baldoni’s lawyers addressed the alleged unscripted kiss, arguing that the only kiss scene was filmed before the strike and was scripted.
However, they now say that this hospital scene, which includes Lively’s alleged unscripted kiss, was filmed before the May 19, 2023 strike.
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“Lively alleges that there was an inappropriate impromptu kiss during the first period of filming before the strike was suspended,” Baldoni’s lawyers wrote in a January 2025 complaint. “However, in fact, only two kissing scenes were filmed during the first period of filming, and both scenes included scripted kisses. These kissing scenes were not improvised.”
The trial is currently scheduled for March, and both Baldoni and Lively are expected to testify. In a motion for summary judgment filed on Thursday, Nov. 13, Mr. Baldoni and the Wayfarer parties asked Judge Louis J. Lehman to rule in their favor without proceeding to trial. Judge Lehman has not yet issued a ruling.
“We have extensive evidence of retaliation by demonstrating ‘negative content’ about her that was amplified, amplified, perpetuated, planted, and otherwise manipulated by Wayfarer and the Wallace parties,” Lively’s attorneys said in a Nov. 12 filing.
Brian Friedman, Baldoni’s attorney, said in a statement on Nov. 4 that he is “focused on Ms. Lively’s claims,” adding, “We remain committed to pursuing the truth through all available legal and factual means and look forward to our day in court.”
