Ryan Reynolds wants Justin Baldoni’s team to pay for his legal fees after being accused of defamation.
“Earlier today we moved for sanctions against the lawyers and parties responsible for the utterly frivolous claims brought against Ryan Reynolds,” Reynolds’ legal team said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday, May 20. “Justin Baldoni’s lawyer and his clients filed a preposterous lawsuit falsely claiming that Ryan Reynolds extorted people he had never met, that he allegedly interfered with business relationships that do not exist, and somehow defamed people he never said a word about based on unspecified statements that do not appear anywhere in their 391-paragraph complaint. These are not serious claims—they are a desperate ploy for clickbait headlines that have no place in federal court.”
According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly, Reynolds’ lawyers filed an amended complaint on Tuesday, after Baldoni and his team accused Reynolds of civil extortion, defamation, and tortious interference.
In the new filing, Reynolds’ lawyers filed a motion for sanctions and slammed the allegations, stating that the claims “do not and cannot exist.” Reynolds’s attorneys previously filed to dismiss Baldoni’s lawsuit back in March, however, the lawsuit is still ongoing.
“Mr. Reynolds provided the Rule 11 Plaintiffs and their counsel an opportunity to save face, explaining these claims’ glaring and fundamental defects and urging that they be withdrawn more than 21 days ago,” the docs read. “Unfortunately, the Rule 11 Plaintiffs and their counsel unequivocally refused to do so, offering no response on these defects except to argue that these issues are appropriately resolved by motion to dismiss and may later be supported by discovery. But these claims’ fundamental failings are not about the parties’ dispute as to the legal arguments relating to their claims, or the facts, or even that all of their claims are weak and meritless (which, they are).”
Reynolds’ attorneys accused Baldoni’s team of violating Rule 11, which requires court filings to be made in good faith and are supported by reasonable inquiry into the facts and law.
“The Rule 11 Plaintiffs’ defamation claims against Mr. Reynolds are likewise frivolous,” the filing read. “The Rule 11 Plaintiffs are only able to identify two statements that they can even claim Mr. Reynolds made, but they concede that each of those statements are exclusively about Baldoni.”
Reynolds’ lawyers alleged that Baldoni’s “frivolous claims” against Reynolds were not made by accident. They argued that the court should impose sanctions and suggested that attorneys’ fees be awarded to Reynolds.
Baldoni, 41, and Reynolds’ legal drama began in December 2024 when the Deadpool actor’s wife, Blake Lively, sued Baldoni. Lively, who costarred in It Ends With Us with Baldoni, accused him of sexual harassment and orchestrating a smear campaign against her.
Baldoni, who also directed the film, denied the allegations and subsequently filed his own lawsuit against Lively, 37, Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane. In the $400 million lawsuit, Baldoni accused the couple of civil extortion, defamation, false light invasion of privacy and more. Lively and Reynolds have denied the allegations.
Lively and Baldoni have yet to come to a resolution in their legal drama. A trial is scheduled for March 9, 2026.
