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Just two weeks before Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni were set to face off in a Manhattan federal courtroom for the May 18 trial over their explosive It Ends With Us legal fight, the former co-stars have reached a confidential settlement, bringing a two-year dispute to an abrupt close.
The agreement, confirmed Monday, follows months of pre-trial litigation in which Judge Lewis Liman had already narrowed Lively's claims, leaving only allegations of retaliation and related conduct after dismissing the majority of her case in June 2025.
A previous countersuit filed by Baldoni seeking hundreds of millions in damages against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and publicist Leslie Sloane was dismissed earlier in the proceedings, sharpening focus on the remaining retaliation claim at the center of the dispute.
Both sides issued a joint statement emphasizing that the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel remained a point of pride, and that its broader message about domestic violence awareness had always been central to their work.
They added that concerns raised by Lively were taken seriously and acknowledged, and that all parties were now committed to maintaining professional environments free from impropriety and online hostility going forward.
The case, which began with Lively's 2024 sexual harassment and retaliation complaint filed with California civil rights authorities, evolved into a highly public legal and PR battle involving subpoenas, unsealed messages, and sharply contested narratives between the former collaborators.
At one point, the dispute expanded into a broader Hollywood conversation about workplace conduct and crisis management, with both camps trading allegations before the judge ultimately pared back the scope of Lively's claims ahead of trial.
Both Lively and Baldoni are expected to avoid a public trial that would have revisited sensitive allegations and extensive private communications, instead signaling an end to one of Hollywood's most closely watched behind-the-scenes disputes and allowing each side to move forward without further court confrontation.
Neither side commented beyond the joint statement as legal teams finalized terms ahead of the scheduled May trial date in New York federal court case.
