Justin Baldoni fires back after Ryan Reynolds says he can’t sue over ‘hurt feelings’

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Ryan Reynolds is asking a judge to drop him as a defendant from the legal shenanigans between his wife Blake Lively and her former co-star Justin Baldoni — claiming that Baldoni’s argument against him has no legal bounds and amounts to “hurt feelings.”

In a motion filed Tuesday, the Deadpool star moved to dismiss the legal claims brought against him by Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios.

Baldoni, who directed and starred in It Ends with Us alongside Lively, sued the actress and her husband, claiming the pair used their fame and influence to defame and extort him.

Reynolds and his legal team argued that Baldoni’s accusations have no merit, noting how the lawsuit focuses on the IF star allegedly calling Baldoni a “predator” in private conversations — which Reynolds’ attorneys, Mike Gottlieb and Esra Hudson, countered as not legally qualifying as defamation.

“What does Ryan Reynolds have to do with that (Lively and Baldoni’s dispute), legally speaking, other than being a supportive spouse who has witnessed firsthand the emotional, reputational, and financial devastation Ms. Lively has suffered?” his lawyers wrote in a memorandum supporting Tuesday’s motion, according to USA Today.

“The entirety of Mr. Baldoni’s case appears to be based on Mr. Reynolds allegedly privately calling Mr. Baldoni a ‘predator,’ but here’s the problem — that is not defamation unless they can show that Mr. Reynolds did not believe that statement to be true,” Gottlieb and Hudson said in a statement.

“The complaint doesn’t allege that,” they continued. “In fact, it suggests the opposite: That Mr. Reynolds genuinely believes Mr. Baldoni is a predator.”

Baldoni’s lawyers issued their own statement, telling the publication: “Mr. Reynolds’ exploitation of his enormous power in Hollywood continues, this time arrogantly asking to be dismissed from the case despite his publicly documented involvement extending far beyond just being a ‘supportive spouse.’”

The filing is the latest in a legal battle between Lively and Baldoni in which both sides accuse the other of orchestrating a smear campaign over behind-the-scenes drama on It Ends With Us.

After Lively sued, Baldoni filed his own lawsuit alleging extortion, defamation and claims related to breach of contract, among several others.

In Reynolds’ motion to dismiss, his lawyers referenced allegations made by Lively, who has accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and retaliation in multiple complaints.

“Mr. Reynolds has a First Amendment right to express his opinion of Mr. Baldoni, which should be comforting to a group of people who have repeatedly called Ms. Lively and Mr. Reynolds ‘bullies’ and other names over the past year,” Gottlieb and Hudson said.

A spokesperson for Reynolds dismissed Baldoni’s lawsuit as an attempt to go after the actor for sharing the same values Baldoni claims to stand for.

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“The claims filed against Mr. Reynolds are simply a list of grievances attempting to shame him for being the man Mr. Baldoni has built his brand pretending to be — a man who is ‘confident enough to listen’ to the woman in his life,” the statement reads.

In Baldoni’s original suit, the actor and director alleged Reynolds based his character Nicepool in Deadpool & Wolverine around Baldoni’s “woke feminist” brand, and used the role to bully him.

Reynolds’ lawyers also claim Baldoni’s “thin-skinned outrage over a movie character does not even pretend to be tied to any legal claims” and instead is just Baldoni alleging he has “hurt feelings.”

Lively and Baldoni are headed to trial in March 2026.