Justin Baldoni’s lawyer is addressing the possibility of deposing Taylor Swift in the actor’s lawsuit against It Ends With Us costar Blake Lively.
“I don’t know that we’re going to depose Taylor Swift or not,” attorney Bryan Freedman said on the Wednesday, February 5, edition of TMZ’s “Two Angry Men” podcast.
“I think that that’s gonna be probably a game time decision,” Freeman noted. “I don’t know that that decision’s been made. But, I can tell you this: Anyone that reasonably has information that can provide evidence in this case is going to be deposed. I mean, for sure.”
Last month, Baldoni — who also directed It Ends With Us and produced the project under his production company, Wayfarer Studios — filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, 37, for defamation. His filing was in response to a December 2024 lawsuit from the Gossip Girl alum who alleged Baldoni created a “hostile work environment” and caused the actress “severe emotional distress” while on set of the romantic drama.
Justin Baldoni Seemingly Mentions Taylor Swift in Text to Blake Lively
In Baldoni’s filing, the actor provided alleged text messages between himself and Lively, one of which appeared to mention Swift, 35, and Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, after the pair were allegedly present while Baldoni and Lively discussed changes for the movie’s famous rooftop scene between their characters.
“We’re working on rooftop scene today, I really love what you did. It really does hep [sic] a lot. Makes it so much more fun and interesting. (And I would have felt that way without Ryan and Taylor),” Baldoni’s texts read alongside a winking face emoji. “You really are a talent across the board. Really excited nd [sic] grateful to do this together.”
Baldoni alleged in his suit that an unnamed “megacelebrity” was involved in the drama involving the rooftop moment that “dramatically differed” from the original version. Baldoni claimed that he had expressed his gratitude for Lively’s “passion” but wanted the scene to be “somewhere between the original version and Lively’s version.” Lively allegedly waited “multiple days” before returning his text.
“Of course, didn’t feel great for me. Or [another megacelebrity friend and Ryan Reynolds]. To have my passion praised instead of my specific contribution,” Lively allegedly texted Baldoni, per the docs, which didn’t name the identity of her celebrity friend.
Baldoni also mentioned Swift in a text message exchange between himself and a Sony executive, discussing the possibility of using one of the pop star’s songs, “My Tears Ricochet,” for the film. (The track was ultimately used in the trailer and the movie’s final cut.)
“Blake is calling Taylor to approve the song. She of course reached out saying she is asking for time with … her editor,” read an alleged message from a contact named Sony Executive No. 1. “We know it was conditional on signing contract – but asking if you’ll reconsider so … can release this trailer and Blake does not change mind re calling Taylor Swift.”
News broke in December 2024 that Lively had sued Baldoni for sexual harassment on the set of It Ends With Us. The actress subpoenaed numerous texts, emails and documents, which were posted by The New York Times in its coverage of Lively’s complaint. She also accused Baldoni and his crisis management team of scheming to savage her reputation in an effort to bury the harassment allegations.
Baldoni denied the claims and countersued Lively, Reynolds, and her publicist, Leslie Sloane, for defamation, civil extortion and invasion of privacy. The pair’s trial is currently set for March 2026. (Baldoni also sued the NYT for $250 million. The outlet responded to the defamation suit at the time, calling it “rife with inaccuracies.”)
Blake Lively Allegedly Objects to Deposition by Justin Baldoni’s Attorney
When Freedman appeared Wednesday on “Two Angry Men,” host Harvey Levin repeatedly pressed him about potentially deposing Swift ahead of a trial.
“My assumption is they’re probably gonna take some legal actions that are beyond the bounds of decency,” Freedman replied. “And we’ll see if they can try and avoid a deposition.”
