The pop superstar is a close friend of the actress, who is suing her ‘It Ends with Us’ costar Baldoni, alleging sexual harassment and that he deployed a smear campaign against her

Blake Lively, Taylor Swift and Justin Baldoni. Photo:Gotham/GC Images; Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty; John Nacion/Variety via Getty

Taylor Swift and Blake Lively have been close friends for nearly a decade — and now the singer has been name-checked in the actress’ complaint against her It Ends with Us costar Justin Baldoni.

Lively, 37, sued Baldoni, 40, and others, including his public relations team, alleging in a complaint that he waged a campaign to “destroy” her reputation amid the film’s press cycle. She also accused Baldoni — who directed the film — of sexual harassment on set, with allegations including that he showed her explicit images and videos, asked her about her personal sex life, attempted to add additional intimacy scenes to the film that she had not originally agreed to and made unprofessional comments about her weight.

Swift, 35, is mentioned twice in the complaint, namely in a “scenario planning document” that, according to the suit, was written by Baldoni’s public relations team at TAG PR, headed by crisis management expert Melissa Nathan.

The pop superstar is mentioned in the document amid a discussion of ways to possibly target Lively in the press in a negative manner.

“The Scenario Planning document states that TAG could ‘also explore planting stories about the weaponization of feminism and how people in [Lively’s] circle like Taylor Swift, have been accused of utilizing these tactics to ‘bully’ into getting what they want,’” the complaint says.

Taylor Swift and Blake Lively hug at the 2024 Super Bowl in Las Vegas. Rob Carr/Getty

TAG PR’s majority stakeholder is a company run by Scooter Braun, according to The New York Times. Braun is a talent manager and entrepreneur who famously acquired Swift’s master recordings in a $300 million sale in 2019 and sold them — without her knowledge, she claimed — in 2020, prompting the star to re-record her first six albums in order to own the masters.

Though Baldoni allegedly reviewed the scenario planning document and texted film producer Jamey Heath that he was “[n]ot in love with” it, as he felt the plan didn’t have enough “defense,” Swift is mentioned once more in an alleged message from Nathan to Jennifer Abel, a public relations exec.

In the alleged message, Nathan weighs the power of Lively’s fanbase while discussing a potential social media plan that would help suppress negative content about Baldoni and amplify negative content about Lively, according to the complaint. She notes that because Lively and Swift are close friends, the actress has the support of the pop star’s fans.

“We have seen the most innocuous issues turn giant due to socials or the hugest crisis have no effects on social whatsoever- you just cannot tell at this stage,” Nathan allegedly wrote in a message printed in the complaint. “But, [Lively] does have some of the [Swift] fanbase so we will be taking it extremely seriously.”

Lively and Swift have been close friends since 2015, and the singer even included the names of Lively’s daughters Betty, 5, James, 10, and Inez, 8, in lyrics on her Folklore album. Lively’s husband, Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds. recently confirmed to Deadline that Swift is godparent to the girls (The pair are also parents to a baby boy named Olin).

Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni at the ‘It Ends with Us’ premiere in New York. Gotham/WireImage (2)

It Ends with Us, a big-screen adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s beloved novel, was released in August. Rumors of a rift among the cast began on the film’s official press tour, as Baldoni did most of his press solo, and fans noticed that many lead actors in the film did not follow him on Instagram.

Lively’s complaint, which is a precursor to filing a discrimination lawsuit in California, accuses Baldoni of fostering a “hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production” of the film. The actress also alleged that his behavior had an “extreme” “emotional impact” on her, which also affected Reynolds and their four children.

Bryan Freedman, Baldoni’s lawyer, called Lively’s allegations “false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt.” He also said her complaint was lodged to “fix her negative reputation.”

Freedman also alleged that Lively caused problems on set of the film, which is currently streaming, “threatening to not showing up to set, threatening to not promote the film, ultimately leading to its demise during release.”

Lively, meanwhile, said in a statement to The New York Times, “I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted.”