Justin Baldoni continues to face the consequences of Blake Lively’s harassment lawsuit against him. Earlier this month, Baldoni received the Voices of Solidarity Award for his efforts to advocate for women and girls. The award was revoked after his co-star in the film It Ends With Us took legal action against him.
The award presented by Vital Voices, celebrated men who stand with courage and compassion to support gender equality. It was awarded to Baldoni on December 9. The organization stated that the issues cited in Lively’s lawsuit were inconsistent with their values and the spirit of the award.
After Lively’s legal filing accused Baldoni, his publicists, and Wayfarer Studios of harassment and plotting against her reputation, Vital Voices announced that it had decided to rescind the honor. The organization wrote on social media, “On Saturday, December 21, we learned through news reports about a lawsuit brought by Blake Lively against Mr. Baldoni, his publicists, and others that is disturbing and alleges abhorrent conduct.”
They added, “The communications among Mr. Baldoni and his publicists included in the lawsuit — and the PR effort they indicate — are, alone, contrary to the values of Vital Voices and the spirit of the Award. We have notified Mr. Baldoni that we have rescinded this award.”
Meanwhile, Sony Pictures, distributor of It Ends With Us, has come out in support of Lively, stating that any attempt to taint her reputation is reprehensible. The company told The Hollywood Reporter, “We have previously expressed our support for Blake in connection with her work on and for the film. We fully and firmly reiterate that support today.”
Sony Pictures continued their statement, “Further, we strongly condemn any reputational attacks on her. Any such attacks have no place in our business or in a civil society.”
SAG-AFTRA also issued a statement in support of Lively’s allegations and praised her for speaking out. Blake Lively has also received support from celebs such as Amber Heard, America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel, and more, whereas Justin Baldoni has been dropped by his agency, WME, following the lawsuit.
