Judge Orders Taylor Swift’s Texts in Blake Lively Case
A judge has ruled that messages between Blake Lively and Taylor Swift can be handed over to Justin Baldoni. This decision is part of the ongoing legal battle involving the actress, offering a glimpse into potential evidence and the public personas of these high-profile figures.
Text Messages and the Legal Fight
A judge has determined that communications between Blake Lively and her friend, Taylor Swift, regarding the environment on the “It Ends With Us” film set are relevant to the case. Lively’s legal team sought to prevent Baldoni from obtaining the messages, claiming irrelevance.
In December, Lively sued Baldoni and his studio, alleging sexual harassment on set. She claimed he led a campaign aimed at ruining her reputation. Baldoni countersued, but a judge dismissed his defamation lawsuit the previous week.
Subpoenas and PR Concerns
In May, Baldoni’s lawyers tried to obtain the messages from Swift directly via subpoenas to the pop star and her legal team. However, these subpoenas were dropped after Swift’s legal team argued they amounted to an “unwarranted fishing expedition.”
Lively later tried to prevent Baldoni from accessing the messages through standard discovery processes. The judge wrote that the requests for messages were “reasonably tailored” to discover information that could prove or disprove Lively’s harassment and retaliation claims.
Taylor Swift has been described in legal documents as one of Blake Lively’s “dragons” https://t.co/9jD3M1N4kZ pic.twitter.com/qI7t0oJ1sA
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) June 16, 2025
Reactions and Further Developments
In response to the judge’s decision, a spokesperson for Lively told Billboard that the actress had “produced far more documents” than Baldoni. They added that Baldoni and his publicity team had been trying to “drag Taylor Swift” into the saga since last summer.
“We will continue to call out Baldoni’s relentless efforts to exploit Ms Swift’s popularity, which from day one has been nothing more than a distraction from the serious sexual harassment and retaliation accusations he and the Wayfarer [Studios] parties are facing,”
— Lively’s Spokesperson, Billboard
The judge stated that Lively’s argument that Baldoni was involving Swift for PR reasons “does not justify denying the Wayfarer parties relevant discovery.” Data shows that celebrity legal battles have seen a 20% increase in public interest, highlighting the significant impact such cases have on public perception (Legal Trends Report).
The Bigger Picture
When the subpoena was withdrawn, Lively’s spokesperson stated they were “pleased” and would “continue to stand up for any third party who is unjustly harassed or threatened in the process.”
Previously, Swift’s representatives told the BBC that she was being brought into the legal matter to generate “tabloid clickbait.” It was initially reported that Swift was subpoenaed to provide information after allegations that she had pressured Baldoni to accept script rewrites from Lively for the film.
Baldoni mentioned he was invited to Lively’s New York home in 2023 to discuss script changes, where Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, and Swift were present as her “dragons.”
In response, Swift’s representatives said she “was not involved in any casting or creative decision” and “never saw an edit or made any notes on the film.” Variety also previously reported that Baldoni’s lawyers were using the subpoena to try to get messages relating to an allegation that Lively’s representatives had threatened to release old text messages if Swift didn’t support her.
Lively’s lawyers denied these allegations as “unequivocally and demonstrably false.” The trial is scheduled for March 2026.
