Blake Lively accuses ‘It Ends With Us’ studio of harassment and smear campaign

This past summer, the press tour for the release of It Ends With Us, a movie that deals with domestic violence, saw public opinion turn against one of its stars, Blake Lively.

But behind the scenes, Lively alleges in a legal complaint published by The New York Times, she faced sexual harassment, repeated violations of her physical boundaries, and a “multi-tiered plan” designed to “destroy” her reputation.

In the undated legal filing, which the Times said was filed Friday to theCalifornia Civil Rights Department, she accuses co-star and director Justin Baldoni and his team of attacking her public image after a meeting was held to address “repeated sexual harassment and other disturbing behavior” by Baldoni and a lead producer on the movie.

If the California Civil Rights Department accepts the case, it could investigate, potentially resulting in legal action.

An attorney for the studio, Bryan Freedman, said in a statement emailed to NPR