What we know so far about Justin Baldoni's new suit vs. Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds

What Justin Baldoni's new lawsuit says

In the 179-page complaint, Baldoni is suing Lively and Reynolds for civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy, claiming that his co-star "deliberately and systematically robbed" him and Wayfarer Studios of their movie and publicly attacked him by "falsely claiming that he had sexually harassed her."

Baldoni accused her of using him as a "scapegoat" after her image was tainted and blamed him in a "malicious and unforgivably public manner."

The actor also made mention of how Lively worked for months with the New York Times to prepare a "false and damaging" article against him as well as how she used her influence to "seize control" of the film and "oust" him from all marketing and promotional efforts.

"She set out to destroy [Baldoni and Wayfarer's] livelihoods and businesses if they did not bend to her incessant demands, and when they refused to give way, she did exactly that, accusing them of foul and reprehensible sexual misconduct," the document stated.

"When Lively faced significant public backlash from what was often referred to as her 'tone-deaf' and insensitive press tour for the film, she doubled down on her false and misleading accusations against Baldoni," it added. "The reality is that it was Lively and her team who carefully planned and implemented a vile smear campaign against Baldoni and Wayfarer to deflect attention and blame for Lively’s disastrous misjudgments."

According to the suit, one of the "disastrous marketing efforts" Lively allegedly made was to name a drink "Ryle You Wait," which takes after Baldoni's character who committed domestic violence in the film.

Later on, it was claimed Lively and Reynolds threatened Baldoni to publicly apologize for the supposed mistakes or else the "gloves would come off."

The document stressed that the issue is "not a case about celebrities sniping at each other in the press, but rather a case about "two of the most powerful stars in the world deploying their enormous power to steal an entire film right out of the hands of its director and production studio."

"By bringing this complaint, [Baldoni and Wayfarer] commit themselves to seeking and proving the facts, based not on insinuations built from selectively edited and context-free text snippets, but by putting all the evidence before the court—and the public," the suit read.

Blake Lively 'asserting control'

Baldoni's allegations against Lively include her insistence on having a significant say in the film's production, including creative control over her character's wardrobe.

Apart from that, the actor also alleged that his co-star demanded him to rewrite certain parts of the film and that Taylor Swift lent a hand in helping Lively pressure him into accepting one of her rewrites for the film.

"Lively asked if she could 'take a pass' at writing the rooftop scene in It Ends With Us in which the characters Ryle and Lily first meet. This pivotal scene, much beloved by book fans, was critical for setting the tone for the movie, so Baldoni was reluctant to allow an actor (rather than a union screenwriter) to rewrite this key scene. But Baldoni felt the need to allow Lively to rewrite the scene and agreed to take a look at what she put together," the document said.

Baldoni was "hesitant" about the changes as it "dramatically differed from what had been written originally." Afterward, Lively allegedly "went silent for multiple days."

Baldoni was then "summoned" by Reynolds to their penthouse in New York, with Swift arriving later on and "began praising Lively’s script."

For Baldoni, that meeting meant "he needed to comply with Lively’s direction for the script."

Baldoni said he texted Lively that while her supposed rewrite was "so much more fun and interesting," he "would have felt that way without Ryan and Taylor" present. He said he didn't need "Reynolds and her megacelebrity friend to pressure him."

Another instance of Lively's "usurpation" of the film was how Baldoni and his family were allegedly "confined" in the basement of a building where the movie's red carpet premiere was being held.

In images attached to the document, Baldoni could be seen with his wife and other family members in a "makeshift holding area surrounded by concession stand stock."

"Surrounded by close friends, family, soda bottles, and a lot of love, the irony of being held in a basement on what was arguably one of the most important nights of Baldoni’s career thus far, was not lost on anyone," the suit stated.

"Once the main theater was deemed 'clear' of Lively and her guests, Baldoni and his group were ushered into a separate theater to view the Film. At the conclusion of the screening, they were again quickly escorted out of the building by security to avoid even a chance of interaction with Lively or her guests," it added.

Apart from Lively's supposedly controlling behavior, Baldoni also asserted that she made fun of his physical appearance when she joked about his nose and suggested that "he should get plastic surgery" while filming for a scene.

Black Lively's response

Lively’s legal team has now issued a response to Baldoni's defamation case, calling it a "desperate strategy" and "another chapter in the abuser playbook."

"This is an age-old story: A woman speaks up with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser attempts to turn the tables on the victim. This is what experts call DARVO. Deny. Attack. Reverse Victim Offender," the actress' legal team said in a statement shared by People.

"Their response to sexual harassment allegations: She wanted it, it’s her fault. Their justification for why this happened to her: Look what she was wearing," they continued. "In short, while the victim focuses on the abuse, the abuser focuses on the victim. The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, it does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail."

Baldoni's camp has yet to comment on the statement.

The It Ends with Us film, based on the book by Colleen Hoover, touches on issues of domestic violence and abuse.