Justin Baldoni’s lawyer breaks silence on ‘leaked texts’

In an almost 80-page complaint filed on Wednesday, Hollywood A-lister Blake Lively, who is married to Ryan Reynolds, accused her film’s director and co-star Justin Baldoni of severe assault charges, including forcing unwanted kiss scenes on set and watching her naked. She also provided exhibits, including alleged text exchanges over email between Baldoni’s publicists, which Lively claims were part of a campaign to tarnish her reputation.

Also read: Justin Baldoni’s apology to wife Emily resurfaces amid Blake Lively’s sexual harassment lawsuit

“TAG PR operated as any other crisis management firm would when hired by a client experiencing threats by two extremely powerful people with unlimited resources,” Bryan Freedman said in a statement to Us Weekly. (for unversed the PR firm mentioned is the same one hired by Baldoni for crisis management.) “The standard scenario planning TAG PR drafted proved unnecessary as audiences found Lively’s own actions, interviews, and marketing during the promotional tour distasteful, and responded organically to that which the media themselves picked up on,” Freedman continued defending the exhibits attached in the lawsuit.

Freedman argued that the leaked texts involving Baldoni and his PR team were misrepresented, accusing the New York Times of ironically aiding Lively’s alleged “dubious PR tactics” by publishing the exchanges without proper context.

Also read: Amber Heard gives stunning reaction to Blake Lively’s complaint about Justin Baldoni, blasts social media: ‘Horrifying’

Baldoni’s publicist defends alleged text exchanges

Jennifer Abel, a publicist implicated in Blake Lively’s lawsuit against Justin Baldoni, defended her leaked text exchanges, claiming they were misinterpreted. In her now-deleted Facebook post stated the messages, shared with crisis expert Melissa Nathan, were lighthearted comments about fan reactions and did not indicate any deliberate smear campaign against Lively.

“What the cherry picked messages don’t include, although not shockingly as it doesn’t fit the narrative, is that there was no ‘smear’ implemented,” Abel wrote. She emphasised that Baldoni’s team never implemented negative strategies, focusing instead on monitoring social narratives and ensuring positive coverage. “we didn’t have to implement anything because the internet was doing the work for us.”

She claimed Lively’s team had planted negative stories about Baldoni as a backup plan if he didn’t comply with their demands during the marketing campaign. Abel clarified that her job was to organize interviews and screenings for Baldoni, and she chose to support him based on evidence showing he had a history of treating people fairly, especially women. She stood by her decision, feeling confident in her efforts.

“After reviewing the evidence, facts, hard proof that countered every single thing that was being claimed and demanded at the start of production, I made a choice to stand by my client of almost 5 years, who had dedicated his life to the equal treatment of others, especially women.”