Blake Lively thanked fans for their support after her first movie premiere since her messy legal battle with Justin Baldoni began.
The 37-year-old actor shared a post to Instagram on Tuesday with photos from the premiere of her new movie, Another Simple Favor. The film, which she stars in alongside Anna Kendrick, debuted on Friday at the 2025 SXSW Film & TV Festival.
Lively’s post included multiple snaps of her on the red carpet. In it, she wore a pink strapless dress, with a matching latex shirt dress over it, and her hair half-up. She also shared photos with the rest of the cast and crew—including actor Henry Golding and the director of the A Simple Favor sequel, Paul Feig—and expressed her gratitude to her fans.
“Watching @asimplefavor opening night @sxsw felt like a rock concert. Thank you to the very best audience. Texas turns it out,” the Gossip Girl alum wrote in the caption of her post, which also included photos of her greeting fans at the movie premiere.
“Making this movie was already the gift, every element of it. To share it with you all and feel the love returned to us was the best feeling. Thank you for having us Austin. And yes. It’s latex,” she continued, referring to her shirt dress.
During an interview with Variety at the event, Kendrick was asked how her new film is “being impacted by everything going on in the world” — which appeared to be a reference to Lively’s ongoing legal battle with Baldoni.
The actor responded with what fans called the “perfect” response: “Why? What happened? I did ayahuasca, and the last year of my life has been gone. But I heard the movie’s amazing.”
The Pitch Perfect alum gave an similarly terse response to a reporter who asked her what it was like working with Lively again, simply saying: “Oh you know.” Meanwhile, Lively described working working with Kendrick as “the best.”
Rumors then spread that the two actors were feuding, with social media users claiming Lively was “terrified to talk the red carpet,” as Kendrick was “p***** and never wants to work with her again.” Feig quickly shut those accusations down, however, responding: “Um … you’re wrong.”
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Any questions about Lively’s ongoing legal battle were perhaps unsurprising, given it was her first premiere since she sued Baldoni in December for sexual harassment and trying to “destroy” her reputation. Rumors of a feud between the actors on the set of It Ends with Us started swirling online last year, as they appeared to avoid each other during the film’s promotional tour. At the time, Lively was called out for a “tone-deaf” approach to the movie, with fans claiming she failed to treat its heavy subject matter with the appropriate solemnity.
In the lawsuit against Baldoni, Lively alleged that the backlash she received was part of a carefully orchestrated effort by Baldoni’s PR team.
The Jane the Virgin star, who denies the accusations, is suing The New York Times for $250 million, and he is counter-suing Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, for $400 million. The lawsuit against the couple alleges that they’re attempting to “destroy” Baldoni’s reputation and career.
In January, a New York federal judge informed both parties to prepare for a trial in March 2026. After this, Lively and Reynolds’ attorneys filed a notice stating that they would seek to dismiss Baldoni’s counter-lawsuit.
Only three weeks ago, Lively asked a judge for a stronger protective order than the court’s “model” one, after receiving “violent” messages amid her and Baldoni’s legal battle. In addition, her team asked for certain material to be categorized as “an Attorney’s Eyes Only,” which would make those legal documents highly confidential.
However, Baldoni’s legal team then criticized those requests, accusing Lively of trying “to shield, from public view, documents and information exchanged herein.” The document also alleged Lively and Reynolds gave an “otherwise confidential administrative complaint” to The New York Times when she first filed her lawsuit in December.
