Court Unseals Documents Detailing $90M Smear Campaign Allegations in Baldoni-Lively Legal Dispute

Newly unsealed court documents reveal that Justin Baldoni allegedly orchestrated a covert social media smear campaign against co-star Blake Lively during the 2024 promotional period for their film It Ends With Us. Emails and text messages show that Baldoni’s publicist, Melissa Nathan, introduced social media consultant Jed Wallace—described as a "hired gun" with a proprietary formula for shaping public narratives—to Baldoni's business partner, Jamey Heath, to coordinate an "untraceable" campaign aimed at countering negative accounts and controlling the narrative. Wallace was paid $90,000 for a three-month contract through Baldoni’s production company, Wayfarer Studios, with invoices confirming monthly payments of $30,000 in August, September, and October 2024. The campaign was reportedly designed to create social fan engagement to actively combat and sway negative social media sentiment against Lively. In addition, Baldoni’s crisis management team, assembled amid tensions with Lively, reportedly incurred costs nearing $9 million. While Lively's legal team argues the evidence confirms a targeted reputation attack, Baldoni’s representatives maintain that any backlash was organic and deny orchestrating a smear campaign.