Justin Baldoni sues Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds for $400 million

Justin Baldoni claims Blake Lively and her team 'double attempted to destroy' him

Justin Baldoni smiling photos — Justin Baldoni claims Blake Lively and her team 'double attempted to destroy' him

Actor and director Justin Baldoni has filed a lawsuit against his "With Us" costar Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds. Fight back.

it appears after Lively files legal action She filed a lawsuit against Baldoni in December, accusing him of sexual harassment and saying he launched his campaign to "destroy" her reputation.

Now, Baldoni is suing for $400 million (£326 million) for civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy, according to US media reports.

Representatives for Lively, Reynolds and their publicists, who are also named in the case, have yet to respond to Baldoni's lawsuit.

Blake Lively posed for photos on the red carpet with husband Ryan Reynolds and co-star Brandon Sklenar, but Justin Baldoni ) No

Three people - Brandon Sklennar, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds - posed for photos in formal attire. They were standing in front of a big sign that read "It all ends with us" — Blake Lively posed for photos on the red carpet with husband Ryan Reynolds and co-star Brandon Sklenar, but Justin Baldoni ) No

In the latest step in their bitter legal battle, lawyers for Baldoni, 40, claim Lively and her team "double attempted to destroy" him.

His lawyer, Brian Friedman, said the actress and her partner circulated "heavily edited, unverified, new and altered information" to the media.

He also said Lively and her team were "trying to destroy reputations and livelihoods for outrageously selfish reasons."

The controversy stems from the making of This Is Us, an adaptation of a novel about domestic abuse by Colleen Hoover.

The film was released in August last year and was a huge box office success, taking in over $350m (£280m) worldwide.

But things didn't seem to be going well between the two stars at the press conference, they didn't appear on the red carpet together during the New York premiere, and Baldoni didn't even premiere in London.

Four months after the film's release, Lively filed legal action against Baldoni, accusing him and the bosses at his studio, Wayfarer, of sexual harassment as well as "other disturbing behavior" and a "hostile work environment" on the set.

Lively's complaint goes a step further, claiming Baldoni and his crisis management team deliberately damaged her online reputation.

Baldoni's legal team told the BBC at the time that the accusations were "absolutely false" and said they hired a crisis manager because Lively threatened to sabotage the film if her demands were not met. Shoot.

Now, Baldoni claims in a 179-page complaint that he was not at fault and that the high-profile fight "was not a case of celebrities attacking each other in the media."

"When plaintiffs take the stand, jurors will learn that even the most powerful celebrities cannot twist the truth to their will," the statement said.