Director and actor Justin Baldoni filed a defamation countersuit against actress Blake Lively and lost. Baldoni faced allegations of sexual harassment against Lively during the filming of the Hollywood movie 'We Are Done.'
The New York Times (NYT) reported that on the 9th (local time), U.S. Southern District Court Judge Louis Lyman dismissed Baldoni's claim that the Lively couple defamed him and his request for $400 million (about 540 billion won) in damages.
Judge Lyman also dismissed Baldoni's defamation lawsuit worth $250 million (about 340 billion won) filed against NYT.
Hollywood star Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni in December of last year, claiming she was sexually harassed during the filming. Lively alleged that Baldoni made unwanted physical contact and sexual comments towards her during the shoot, and when she tried to expose the harassment, he leaked negative information about her to the media and the internet.
Lively's claims were first reported in an article by NYT in December of last year. In response, Baldoni and his production company filed a separate lawsuit seeking $400 million in damages, claiming that Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, defamed them. They also filed a lawsuit against NYT for $250 million, alleging that the newspaper published the report relying solely on Lively's one-sided claims without verification, thus defaming them and invading their privacy.
A representative for Lively issued a statement about the court's decision, saying, "Today's ruling is a complete victory for Lively and all the parties involved in the countersuit brought by Baldoni, proving their legitimacy."