Lively shot to fame in the hit TV show ‘Gossip Girl’ and went on to to score a few Hollywood roles that made her a big star. As a close friend of singer Taylor Swift, Lively is Hollywood royalty. Her co stars from previous films have issued statements in support while Baldoni faces a backlash after championing himself as a defender of women’s rights.
Blake Lively’s accusations will put Hollywood to test once again. Will Baldoni be held to account for his actions or will there be victim shaming of the woman again. In a bizarre twist of fate it turns out that one of the PR reps for Baldoni also represented superstar Johnny Depp, who infamously smeared his ex wife in the media after she took him to court for alleged domestic abuse in 2022.
Depp won the highly publicised case and got away. Speaking on Lively’s case, Amber Heard, Depp’s ex wife, has said “social media is the absolute personification of the classic saying ‘A lie travels halfway around the world before truth can get its boots on. I saw this firsthand and up close. It’s as horrifying as it is destructive.”
Hollywood is reeling after A-list star Blake Lively went public with sexual harassment allegations on the set of her new hit film. The actor has sued her co star and director on the mega hit film ‘It ends with us’, Justin Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment as well as orchestrating an organised smear campaign against her online as retaliation through a PR agency. Damaging text messages that were attached in Lively’s court filing show how Baldoni allegedly wanted to “bury” her reputation as concerns grew that his behaviour on set may become public news.
This is therefore a moment of reckoning for Hollywood where the ‘me too’ movement brought down some of the biggest names, like producer Harvey Weinstein who is serving time in jail. A few months ago, one of the rape convictions against Weinstein was overturned on the basis that he did not receive a fair trial.
It marked a step backwards for a movement that sought to hold powerful men to account for their actions. When you look at Hollywood more closely, you realise that very few men have actually been convicted for sexual assault or harassment since the me too movement gained traction in the last few years.
Some cases have been settled out of court, while another high profile case involving comedian Bill Crosby also saw him walk out of jail in 2021 after his conviction of sexually assaulting a woman was overturned. Comedian Louis CK was shielded by his own after a series of harassment allegations against him.
A documentary released earlier this year shows how he carefully made his comeback after the sordid details of his behaviour became public. What makes it worse is that it was well known within the industry and just swept under the carpet.
It’s 2025. We simply cannot sweep it under the carpet anymore. Blake Lively’s case is even more terrifying because it not only reveals the gross behaviour of her co star and producer and the sexual harassment she was allegedly subjected to, but also how easy it is for the media to be manipulated in way that shames and blames the victim.
It’s no wonder that we suddenly started seeing negative stories about Lively in the press and on social media that painted her as a diva who was very simply not a nice person. Now the penny has dropped. Women must not and should not feel shame when those that should be ashamed are those who abuse them.
I am glad I hope Blake Lively has taken this head on and I hope gets the justice she deserves.
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