The whole Blake Lively versus Justin Baldoni situation just keeps getting weirder. A recent interview with psychiatrist Dr. Carol Lieberman on Sky News Australia threw some fresh fuel onto the fire. Dr. Lieberman suggested that maybe Lively had genuinely developed feelings for Baldoni while they were filming together. Apparently, she then became uncomfortable with those feelings, and instead of owning up to them, she accused him of harassment. That's a really uncomfortable dynamic, isn't it?
The lawsuit itself is already a massive deal, with Lively claiming Baldoni made her feel unsafe on set. Now, 19 advocacy groups have thrown their weight behind her, calling Baldoni's planned defamation counter-suit against her a potential disaster for the MeToo movement. They're concerned it could chill people from speaking out. These groups are digging into his past public statements, particularly his feminist stance, saying it contradicts his current actions. Lively's team says Baldoni's lawyers are trying to block these voices.
And then there's Lively's husband, Ryan Reynolds. His public support for her has landed him in hot water too. Some people are wondering if he might have orchestrated the lawsuit himself, or if he felt threatened by the idea that his wife was drawn to Baldoni. It's messy. His movie, 'Animal Friends', has definitely been delayed, and he's been busy buying a professional sailing club with Hugh Jackman. Naturally, some are wondering if these moves are just attempts to distract from the whole mess swirling around him and his wife.
Lively herself has been active on social media, posting about her charitable work and her love for her mom. It feels like an attempt to keep things positive and maybe steer the narrative away from the legal drama. But some observers are calling out these posts as a bit too calculated, maybe an effort to manage her public image during this stressful time.
Honestly, watching this whole thing unfold feels like a classic Hollywood power play. Lively's accusations against Baldoni have always seemed a little flimsy, and now she's trying to use the system and these groups to wear him down. The way the groups are using the 'Darvo' tactics – deny, attack, reverse victim and offender – feels particularly unfair and disheartening. It's hard to ignore the irony of him being accused of contradicting his own feminist past while defending himself. And Reynolds' involvement just adds another layer of complication. His movie delay and the sailing club purchase read like classic damage control. It's a lot to unpack, and frankly, it's hard to see anything positive coming out of this for anyone involved. The public is watching, and it feels like we're all waiting to see just how this plays out next.