Ryan Reynolds Accused of Bullying Justin Baldoni, Exploiting Star Power to Ruin His Career

Ryan Reynolds has been accused of using his Hollywood clout in a scheme to derail actor Justin Baldoni's career, according to allegations from Baldoni's legal team. These claims surface as Reynolds seeks to be dismissed from a lawsuit filed by Baldoni against Reynolds and his wife, actress Blake Lively.

The lawsuit, which originated from Lively's claims of sexual harassment by Baldoni on the set of the film It Ends With Us, accuses Reynolds of civil extortion, defamation, and other charges. Baldoni's lawyer, Bryan Freedman, issued a scathing statement alleging Reynolds' involvement went beyond merely being a supportive spouse and extended to defamation and strong-arming Hollywood agencies into cutting ties with Baldoni.

"Mr. Reynolds’ exploitation of his enormous power in Hollywood continues, this time arrogantly asking to be dismissed from the case despite his publicly documented involvement," Freedman stated. "His fingerprints have been all over this smear campaign against Justin and the Wayfarer team since day one." It's quite the accusation, painting Reynolds as less of a Hollywood darling and more of a behind-the-scenes puppet master.

The allegations also touch on Reynolds' use of his popular Deadpool persona. According to the lawsuit, Reynolds allegedly created a character named "Nicepool" specifically to mock Baldoni, further feeding into the narrative of bullying and public ridicule. Freedman has demanded documents pertaining to what he claims is a deliberate attempt to link the character to Baldoni.

Reynolds, however, isn’t taking these accusations lying down. His legal team has fired back, asserting that the claims lack merit. "The entirety of Mr. Baldoni’s case appears to be based on Mr. Reynolds allegedly privately calling Mr. Baldoni a ‘predator,’ but here is the problem: that is not defamation unless they can show that Mr. Reynolds did not believe that statement to be true," said Reynolds' lawyers, Mike Gottlieb and Esra Hudson.

The statement further argues that Reynolds has the First Amendment right to express his opinion, which is bolstered by Lively’s own accusations of sexual harassment and Baldoni’s public admissions about his past behavior. If anything, Reynolds’ team suggests Baldoni’s lawsuit is an attempt to tarnish the actor’s reputation rather than a genuine legal grievance.

This legal saga, which began in December, shows no signs of fizzling out. Both sides have rejected the idea of settling out of court, with a federal judge agreeing that mediation would be inappropriate. The trial is slated for 2026, meaning this Hollywood feud is far from over.

As the drama unfolds, one thing is clear: it’s not just movies that bring the theatrics in Tinseltown. The real-life battles can be just as dramatic, if not more so.