Blake Lively suffered a devastating defeat today against It Ends With Us director Justin Baldoni, losing her high-stakes amended lawsuit in a ruling that’s stripped her of everything she fought for—and then some. The 37-year-old actress, once poised to bury Baldoni with harassment claims, walked out of New York federal court at 5 p.m. PST with her legal dreams in tatters, as Judge Lewis J. Liman slammed the gavel on her case, leaving her reeling and Baldoni triumphant.
“She’s lost it all—credibility, cash, control!” a courtroom insider gasped to us minutes after the verdict. “Blake banked on her 163-page amended complaint—filed Tuesday—to nail Justin for harassment and defamation, but it backfired spectacularly. The judge tore it apart—called it ‘flimsy’ and ‘unsubstantiated.’ She’s crushed!” Lively’s filing, bolstered by claims of two unnamed actresses ready to testify, collapsed when both witnesses refused to appear, leaving her without a leg to stand on.
X erupted as the news broke. “Blake Lively LOSES BIG—Baldoni wins everything!” one user posted, with the hashtag #LivelyLoss racking up 5 million mentions by 8 p.m. “She’s done—court said NOPE!” another crowed, as clips of her stone-faced exit flooded feeds. The ruling, insiders say, hit at 4:45 p.m. PST, with Liman siding with Baldoni’s team, who argued Lively’s “smear campaign” allegations were “baseless” and her witness ploy a “desperate bluff.”
“Justin’s vindicated—Blake’s finished!” Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman roared outside court, clutching a stack of texts he claimed “proved” Lively’s “lies.” The judge reportedly dismissed her defamation count—added Tuesday—outright, ruling her “no credible evidence” of Baldoni’s alleged PR war. Worse, Lively’s been ordered to pay Baldoni’s legal fees—rumored at $2 million—gutted her push for a protective order, and faces a countersuit greenlit to proceed, with Baldoni’s $400 million defamation claim now “unstoppable,” per experts.
Lively, flanked by husband Ryan Reynolds, fled the courthouse in tears, dodging paparazzi as boos rang out from Baldoni fans. “She’s screaming at her team—‘How did this happen?’” a source spilled. “Ryan’s livid—tried consoling her, but she’s a wreck.” Her camp’s terse “We’ll appeal” did little to stem the tide—X users piled on: “Blake’s empire’s toast—lost it ALL today!”
Baldoni, 41, grinned ear-to-ear, telling press, “Justice won—I’m free!” His team’s website, Lawsuit Info, spiked with traffic, as supporters hailed him “the real victim.” Trump, a Baldoni ally, tweeted, “Blake LOST BIGLY—Justin’s a WINNER! Sad!” Meanwhile, Lively’s SNL 50th glow from February 16 dimmed fast—insiders whisper studios are “rethinking” her projects.
“She bet the farm and lost—career, rep, millions,” the insider added. “Baldoni’s countersuit could bankrupt her—this is her nightmare.” With X ablaze—“From Gossip Girl to gossip gone!”—and Hollywood buzzing, Lively’s big court loss today marks a fall from grace nobody saw coming. The war’s not over, but round one’s a knockout—Blake’s down, and Justin’s on top!