Blake Vigorous is condemning Wayfarer Studios for what her legal professionals are calling a “disingenuous charade” of an investigation into her sexual harassment claims in opposition to It Ends With Us costar and director Justin Baldoni.
Vigorous’s authorized group filed a movement to compel Baldoni’s movie studio to share paperwork regarding its “so-called ‘investigation” across the actress’ preliminary accusations in opposition to Baldoni on Monday, Might 19, Us Weekly can verify.
“It seems that Wayfarer is making an attempt to cover behind the ‘investigation’ to conduct shadow discovery and conceal it from any scrutiny,” a spokesperson for Vigorous instructed Us in a press release on Monday. “As Ms. Vigorous has alleged, Wayfarer ignored its authorized obligation to conduct an investigation when she privately raised considerations beginning in Might 2023, however claims it’s doing one now — in the midst of a case wherein it sued her for $400 million for a similar issues it now says its ‘neutrally’ investigating.”
The assertion to Us is just like what was written within the letter to Choose Lewis J. Liman on Monday, per court docket information obtained by Us.
“Does anybody consider that Wayfarer is genuinely investigating a movie set office that now not exists?” Vigorous’s reps puzzled of their assertion on Monday. Us Weekly has reached out to Baldoni’s group for remark.
Vigorous’s preliminary criticism, filed in December 2024, accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and allegedly fostering a hostile work surroundings on the movie’s set. Vigorous claimed, partly, that Baldoni mentioned his intercourse life, together with an alleged pornography habit, together with her throughout their time on set. She additional alleged that “degrading and sexual feedback” had been made by Baldoni about Vigorous. (Baldoni has vehemently denied all allegations in opposition to him.)
Vigorous’s authorized group subsequently filed a Rule 11 Sanctions on Monday, “requesting the Court docket to impose financial sanctions” in opposition to Wayfarer Basis founder Steve Sarowitz, Baldoni’s producing accomplice Jamey Heath, publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel, and It Ends With Us Film LLC.
The Rule 11 submitting referred to as under consideration “claims in opposition to Ms. Vigorous that haven’t any cheap foundation in legislation or reality and clearly had been introduced for an improper objective.” One instance said within the docs was allegations made by Baldoni’s authorized group that Vigorous is extorting Taylor Swift amid the continuing lawsuit.
Blake Vigorous has responded by way of her authorized group to Justin Baldoni’s studio submitting a brand new lawsuit in opposition to her, her publicist Leslie Sloan and her husband Ryan Reynolds. The submitting, obtained by Us Weekly on Thursday, January 16, seeks damages of $400 million and accuses Vigorous, 37, of being “decided to make Baldoni the real-life villain […]
“If you wish to know why Justin Baldoni’s lawyer pulled his newest inflammatory and defamatory media stunt, it could be as a result of he knew that each he and his purchasers had been about to be hit with sanctions motions primarily based on his reckless determination to file a number of frivolous claims in federal court docket,” Vigorous’s legal professionals, Esra Hudson and Mike Gottlieb, shared in a press release on Monday. “You possibly can’t file lawsuits in federal court docket that haven’t any foundation in legislation or reality to create a harassing media narrative, or in different phrases, their technique from day one.”
They concluded: “The Baldoni authorized group obtained discover of their sanctionable habits weeks in the past, however doubled down quite than withdrawing their frivolous and harassing claims. Now they’ll face the implications of treating federal court docket like a media playground.”