Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively’s attorneys are attempting to hash out key pretrial issues, including possible damages caused by the It Ends With Us legal drama.
During a Tuesday, April 28, pretrial conference in New York City, Lively’s lawyers argued that the actress missed out on the opportunity to make up to $35 million for a sequel to It Ends With Us as a result of her former costar and director’s alleged actions and subsequent legal battle.
“Baldoni had suggested at one point that Ms. Lively would direct the sequel, and the lead actress would be compensated more,” an attorney for Lively, 38, shared during the hearing, per NBC News.
Baldoni’s attorneys, however, called the amount surrounding a potential sequel speculative. They also disagreed over Lively’s claim that she lost $39 million to $143 million after the film was released, saying any losses cannot be pinned on Baldoni, 42.
“Ms. Lively has a track record of brands that have not succeeded,” an attorney for Baldoni claimed on Tuesday, per NBC News. “She is seeking pie-in-the-sky damages here.”
Us Weekly has reached out to Lively and Baldoni’s legal teams for comment regarding Tuesday’s conference.
According to court documents obtained by Us on Tuesday, Lively’s team argued that “negative PR has created heightened scrutiny from buyers who are showing less goodwill.”
Court documents also suggested that Lively’s liquor brand, Betty Buzz, faced a rise in negative comments on social media after the It Ends With Us legal drama made headlines.
During Tuesday’s pretrial conference, which neither Lively nor Baldoni attended, both legal teams debated expert witness testimony. Each side also predicted that they’d need roughly three weeks to present their cases fully while in the presence of a jury.
According to NBC News, U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman didn’t finalize timing or narrow the witness list. Instead, he asked both Lively and Baldoni’s teams to look into the availability of some of the expert witnesses they plan to call to the witness stand during the trial in order to participate in a pretrial hearing.
Lively and Baldoni’s legal drama began in December 2024, when the actress accused her It Ends With Us costar and director of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment and purposefully creating a smear campaign against her.
Lively decided to sue Baldoni, his publicity team and a series of other defendants, alleging that she was retaliated against for the sexual harassment allegations.
Baldoni strongly denied the allegations and counter-sued Lively. In June 2025, a judge dismissed his lawsuit against the actress.
While Liman previously recommended that Lively and Baldoni consider settling before trial, both parties continue to prepare for an upcoming trial, with jury expected to begin on Monday, May 18.
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