A US judge has ruled that Justin Baldoni may access private text messages between Blake Lively and Taylor Swift relating to the film It Ends With Us, rejecting Lively's bid to keep them confidential.
Judge Lewis J. Liman ruled on 18 June that the messages are "reasonably tailored to discover information that would prove or disprove Lively’s harassment and retaliation claims" against Baldoni, despite Lively’s argument that they were being used for public relations purposes, according to Variety.
He also imposed a protective order to prevent their contents from leaking to the press.
Lively had asked the judge to prevent access to the messages, arguing Baldoni was "dragging Taylor Swift into the saga" as a distraction. Her legal team emphasised in court filings that Swift had no relevant role in the film beyond contributing a song to its soundtrack.
Baldoni’s team had previously subpoenaed Swift and her legal advisers, but later withdrew the request after Swift’s attorneys objected. Undeterred, they continued pursuing the communications through the discovery process.
The development follows several other legal rulings in the It Ends With Us dispute. In June, Judge Liman dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit against Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and others, while allowing Lively’s original harassment claims to move forward. A trial is set for March 2026.
A spokesperson for Lively told People that she has "produced far more documents in this case" and accused Baldoni’s publicists of trying to use Swift’s celebrity to distract from the serious allegations against him. Baldoni’s attorneys are yet to comment.
