Justin Baldoni Reveals Statement Blake Lively Allegedly Wrote for Him During Bad Press ArticlePure

Justin Baldoni and his legal team have released a statement allegedly drafted by Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds calling for the actor-director to take responsibility for It Ends with Us‘ bad press.

According to an amended complaint and timeline of events posted on Baldoni’s new website amid his continued legal battle with Lively, the Jane the Virgin actor, 41, claims that Lively, 37, and her husband Reynolds, 48, prepared a statement for him and his firm asking him to take the blame for the “troubled production” of It Ends with Us, as well as the negative press Lively received while promoting the film. Baldoni and his team say they refused to issue the statement.

The statement was allegedly written in August 2024 by Lively and Reynolds after they were left “furious” at what they believed was unfair positioning of Lively in the promotion of the film, according to Baldoni’s claims. According to the complaint’s timeline of events, the couple claimed that as actor-director of the film, Baldoni was allowed to discuss “more serious messaging” during its promotion.

The statement reads, “It Ends with Us was a troubled production which we take full accountability for. We are very sorry to everyone we caused upset to privately and publicly.”

“Blake Lively, Escher Walcott Colleen Hoover, the entire cast and crew led with professionalism every step of the way, any negativity aimed at them is ours to own,” the statement continued. “We mutually agreed that the cast would be promoting the film separately and understood why.”

“…We hold ourselves accountable, it’s not anyone’s job but ours and that’s part of being ‘man enough.’ We will practice what we preach. We are learning and growing from the experience and we thank everyone for their patience as we find a better way to proceed…,” the statement concluded. 

Representatives for Lively did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

In December 2024, Lively sued Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios (along with It Ends with Us’ lead producer Jamey Heath, Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel, crisis publicist Melissa Nathan and more), alleging sexual harassment and a smear campaign.

Baldoni has denied the sexual harassment allegations, and subsequently countersued Lively, Reynolds and their publicist Leslie Sloane, as well as Sloane’s PR firm Vision PR, Inc., on accusations of defamation and extortion.

According to the Baldoni’s legal filings shared on the website, Lively and Reynolds “demand[ed]” that their statement be released on Baldoni and his company’s behalf and that refusal to do so meant the “gloves will come off.” 

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer??, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

WME agreed with Wayfarer that the statement “was vague, implies culpability without substance, and fails to address the issues at hand,” per the complaint. 

“Furthermore, if the goal was to mitigate negative online attention directed at Lively, the statement would have the opposite effect. In response, Wayfarer, Baldoni, and Heath reject the demand, firmly refusing to issue any statement falsely assuming responsibility for non-existent issues,” Baldoni’s legal team wrote.