Court documents have revealed that a Sony Pictures executive condemned Blake Lively as a “f***ing terrorist” while filming It Ends With Us.
As Lively’s legal battle against Justin Baldoni — her co-star and the director of the 2024 movie — heads to trial, the case’s deposition has brought testimonies to light from the movie’s cast and crew that shed light on the drama that occurred behind the scenes.
Testimony by Andrea Giannetti, an executive vice president of production at Sony Pictures and a creative executive on the movie, was unsealed Tuesday before a summary judgment hearing for Lively’s lawsuit set for Thursday.
In her September deposition, Giannetti testified that she referred to the actor as a “f***ing terrorist” in a conversation with a producer about a “17-point list” of conditions that Lively demanded be signed before she returned to set in November 2023, according to court documents. She said that it was understood on set that Lively threatened to leave the movie if her concerns were not addressed.
“There was a tremendous amount of money that had been invested and spent, and we had to finish the movie or it was unreleasable,” Giannetti said, testifying that Sony had already put about $28 million in the project.
Giannetti testified that the set was a “s*** show” due to issues with the shoot as well as Lively and Baldoni’s ongoing conflicts, according to court documents. She said that Lively complained often on set about Baldoni being “unprepared, indecisive, and inexperienced.”
Sigrid McCrawley, one of Lively’s lawyers, said in a statement about the newly unsealed evidence: “As we head to trial, only Ms. Lively’s claims against the defendants remain. The Court dismissed Wayfarer’s retaliatory countersuit in its entirety last June. The newly unsealed evidence contains never-before seen testimony, messages, and evidence from numerous eyewitnesses backing the claims in Ms. Lively’s lawsuit.”
Despite the tension on set, the exec confirmed that after the movie earned a successful opening weekend at the box office, she texted Lively a glowing congratulatory message, saying: “Blake, $50 million!! Your blood, sweat, tears, brilliant smarts, heart and soul in every single frame. My God, it’s incredible. Thank you 50 million times. And it’s only Saturday night.”
The romance drama movie has become the subject of an increasingly bitter feud after Lively sued Baldoni and the film’s producers over claims of sexual harassment and a campaign to ruin her reputation. Baldoni has strongly denied Lively’s claims and previously countersued for extortion and defamation, but the $400 million lawsuit was dismissed.
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In addition to Giannetti’s testimony in the case, other documents unsealed in Lively’s case include private text messages from Taylor Swift, Lively’s friend at the time, It Ends With Us novelist Colleen Hoover and Lively’s co-star Jenny Slate.
Slate described the movie’s shoot as “really gross and disturbing” in her private texts to Lively. The actor testified that she wrote about Baldoni: “I honestly have never ever encountered anything like this dude. He’s the biggest clown and the most intense narcissist. Lots of lessons learned!”
If Lively and Baldoni cannot reach a deal in court-ordered settlement talks next month, they are set for a May trial.
