The messy saga between It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is facing yet another twist, this time in the form of a voice message Baldoni apparently sent to Lively amid the film’s production where he can be heard apologizing to his on-screen partner.
In a nearly seven-minute voice memo first published by TMZ on Monday, Baldoni, who also served as director for the movie, can be heard speaking about script changes that Lively, one of the film’s producers, had presented.
“Hey Blake, it’s two in the morning. Hopefully this does not wake you up. There is so much I want to say to you,” Baldoni began the message, which TMZ obtained in its entirety.
“I want to start with an apology,” he continued. “Man, reading the second part of your message, my heart sank. I’m really sorry. I for sure fell short and you worked really hard on that. The way you framed it and how it made you feel, I just wanted to say thank you for sharing that with me.
“I feel really grateful that you feel safe enough to tell me that that’s how you feel and share that with me. And I’m really sorry. I f–ked up. That is a fail on my part.
“I am far from perfect. I’m a very flawed man, as my wife will attest …. but I will always apologize and then find my way back to centre. That is one thing I can assure you of. And I’m sorry I made you feel that way, that must have felt terrible.”
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni are seen on the set of ‘It Ends With Us’ on Jan. 12, 2024 in Jersey City, N.J.
Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
Global News has not independently verified the recording’s authenticity, nor when it was recorded or sent. Global News has also reached out to both Lively and Baldoni’s representatives for comment and for a copy of the audio.
In the recording, Baldoni also discusses the now-infamous meeting between the pair, when they met to talk about the movie’s rooftop scene. Lively had rewritten the scene with the encouragement of her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and friend Taylor Swift, and Baldoni can be heard seemingly acknowledging their input.
“Damn right, you’ve got great friends. F–K, we should all have friends like that, aside from the fact that they’re two of the most creative people on the planet,” he said, before adding, “The three of you guys together is unbelievable. Talk about energy. Just a force, all three of you.”
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He also told Lively that he liked her script changes, calling them “really good.”
“I’m excited to go through the whole movie with you,” he said, laughing occasionally. “I’m just excited to spend time with you. I’m excited to be in your sphere and your presence and for us to share creative juices together although that sounds terrible.”
While their legal feud has been ongoing since December 2024, when Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and retaliation first in a complaint and then in a lawsuit about a week later, Baldoni claimed in a January court filing that he felt pressured by Reynolds and Lively’s “megacelebrity friend” to approve the scene revisions after a meeting at Lively and Reynolds’ home.
Baldoni sued earlier this month, accusing Lively and her husband of defamation and extortion and seeking at least US$400 million in damages.
Last week, Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, released a 10-minute video that included one scene where the actors’ characters Lily Bloom (Lively) and Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni) are slow dancing. (The scene was referenced in Lively’s lawsuit against her co-star, accusing him of “behaving inappropriately” and claiming he “ignored well-established industry protocols in filming intimate scenes.”)
The footage shows Baldoni, 40, and Lively, 37, filming a scene with no dialogue, speaking about their spouses and joking about his nose and her spray tan.
In a statement following the release of the footage, Lively’s team says that “every frame of the released footage corroborates, to the letter,” what Lively included in her lawsuit, filed on Dec. 20, 2024, about the specific scene.
“Justin Baldoni and his lawyer may hope that this latest stunt will get ahead of the damaging evidence against him, but the video itself is damning,” Lively’s legal team said in their statement.
“The video shows Mr. Baldoni repeatedly leaning in toward Ms. Lively, attempting to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smells, and talking with her out of character. Every moment of this was improvised by Mr. Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance, and no intimacy coordinator present.”
They also mention that Baldoni was in a position of power as the film’s director and Lively’s boss.
“The video shows Ms. Lively leaning away and repeatedly asking for the characters to just talk. Any woman who has been inappropriately touched in the workplace will recognize Ms. Lively’s discomfort,” her legal team said. “They will recognize her attempts at levity to try to deflect the unwanted touching.
“No woman should have to take defensive measures to avoid being touched by their employer without their consent,” her lawyers said. “This matter is in active litigation in federal court. Releasing this video to the media, rather than presenting it as evidence in court, is another example of an unethical attempt to manipulate the public. It is also a continuation of their harassment and retaliatory campaign.”
On Monday, New York federal judge Lewis J. Liman set a March 9, 2026 trial date and moved an initial conference from mid-February to next week as the public feud between Lively and Baldoni continues to grow. He told lawyers to be prepared to address complaints about pretrial publicity and lawyer conduct.
Liman took the actions after Lively’s lawyers claimed in a filing on Monday that a lawyer for Baldoni was trying to taint potential jurors over lawsuits the actors have filed against each other.
The lawyers said Baldoni’s lawyer was trying to wreck Lively’s career and turn potential New York jurors against her by creating a website to release selected documents and communications between Lively and Baldoni.
On a new and separate front in the series of legal battles, Lively filed a request for a deposition of a man she says was central to turning online sentiment against her during the film’s release and promotion.
It Ends With Us, based on the bestselling 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover, was released in August 2024 and exceeded box office expectations with a $50-million debut. It begins as a standard romantic drama before taking a dark turn into domestic violence. The fallout in its aftermath has made major waves in Hollywood and led to discussions of the treatment of female actors both on sets and in media.
— With files from The Associated Press
