there's nothing more exciting to me like that I get to work with Blake Lively and have her all of her that's what I want this newly leaked audio of Justin baldon's alleged apology to Blake Lively has ignited even more drama in the ongoing legal battle over it ends with us the nearly 7-minute voice memo appears to reveal his regret over creative clashes particularly around one scene but what's the subtext is this a clue about alleged pressure he may have been feeling from Lively's powerful Circle and the release raises more questions was it leaked to help
alon's case or does it reveal uncomfortable moments that could backfire we're going to break it all down for you right now welcome to sidebar presented by law and crime I'm Jesse [Music] Weber a bombshell voice memo seemingly from Justin baloni to Blake Lively has just been leaked adding even more fuel to their ongoing Hollywood legal drama the nearly 7 minute recording which was first released by Daily Mail centers around an apology that baldoni allegedly sent during the production of it ends with us and in it baldoni again the director and co-star of the film addresses
what appear to be creative clashes with Blake Lively over a pivotal scene it's the iconic rooftop moment where their characters essentially meet for the first time or Converse for the first time this is an important moment in the film and also the book upon which the film is based now according to baldoni this was just one disagreement that led to a a fullblown feud so I want to break down what apparently led up to this voice memo and then we'll talk about it so we're going back to April of 2023 during production Lively reportedly asked
baloni if she could rewrite this again iconic rooftop scene and again this film is based off of a novel of the same name so this is a crucial moment for setting the film's tone now Beldon says he was hesitant for her to rewrite this because this was a very important scene but he eventually gave in and he says he gave in because he says he felt pressure from Lively's A-list husband Ryan Reynolds and another major celebrity presumably Taylor Swift so while Beldon claims that both had praised Lively's edits they spoke right in front of him
talked about how great her edits were he was less enthusiastic which he admits ultimately backfired on him so we're going to keep on following all aspects of this baldoni Lively Saga as it develops and for that I have to thank upside for sponsor this episode of sidebar because their support helps make episodes like this possible now upside is awesome it is a free app that gets you cash back on daily Essentials like gas groceries food I pump my gas I can use upside I go out to lunch let's say Chipotle I can use upside perhaps
some maybe gum or Tic Tacs at 7-Eleven I'm using upside why not get cash back when I do all these things right and yes this is actual real cash back it's money that appears in your upside app that you transfer right into your bank account so once you have the free upside app you claim an offer for whatever you're buying on upside you pay as usual using a debit or credit card you follow the steps on the app you get paid so to find out how much you can earn you click the link in the
description to download upside or you scan the QR code on screen but make sure to use our promo code sidebar because you'll get an extra 25 cents back on every gallon on your first tank of gas so now we got to talk about this leaked voice note and first of all we can't confirm who it was leaked by but if if it was leaked by baldon's Camp that fuels The Narrative put forward by BL Lively and Ryan Reynold side that they say baldon's legal team is improperly litigating this case in the media constantly talking about
this case releasing footage from the film and now this they actually have asked the court to step in to stop particularly baldon's attorney Brian fredman from doing this from litigating this case in the public if that's true we don't know for sure but after we listen to this you got to wonder was it actually leaked by baldon's side would he want everyone to hear this does it really help his case because in this leaked voice note apparently sent at 2 in the morning Boni addresses the tension surrounding the writing of this rooftop scene headon offering
what he seems to suggest as a heartfelt apology now by the way keep in mind Something 2 a.m. may sound like a strange time to leave a voice note and arguably it might be but it's our understanding this may have come 10 minutes or so after Lively had texted baloni about her concerns over his reaction to her rewrites of that scene and we're going to get into what she wrote but I want you to check this out I want to start with an apology man I reading the second part of your message my heart sank
and uh I'm really sorry um I I for sure fell short and you worked really hard on that got to give you some context here so balon's apology centers on his initial hesitation to approve the changes that Lively had made to the rooftop scene her rewrites in his lawsuit baldoni claims that he felt compelled to follow Lively script revisions after receiving praise from her powerful Circle Ryan Reynolds and Taylor Swift who allegedly complimented Lively's work during a meeting at her Manhattan penthouse that they were telling baldoni how great this was and text messages from the
lawsuit reveal that baloni was telling Lively quote also was working on rooftop scene today really love what you did it does help a lot makes it so much more fun and interesting and I would have felt that way without Ryan and Taylor so he arguably could be seen to be backtracking and saying no your revisions are great he has come out and basically said the only reason I said that is because I felt this pressure from a-listers like Ryan Reynolds and Taylor Swift now in response this is important Lively reportedly texted him back I told
them again assuming this is Reynolds and Swift that you laughed a bunch and said it's probably a blend but you appreciate my passion so much which of course didn't feel great for me or them to have my passion praised instead of any specific contribution so she was arguably insulted by his reaction to her rewrites okay but baloni again who now claims that he was under pressure and whatever the case might be we can all agree Blake Lively sent that message to Justin baldon and clearly she was not happy with what was going on so he
issues this apology through the voice memo that's why he's saying I'm sorry and I'm so sorry thank you for telling me how you feel and Beldon can be heard promising to make things right with Blake Lively even admitting that he is a very flawed man I am far from perfect I am a very flawed man as my wife will attest and uh and I'm going to up I'm going to say the wrong thing I'm going to put my foot in my mouth uh I'm going to piss you off probably but I will always apologize and
um and find my way back to center now in baldon's lawsuit and what appears to be part of Lively's response to baldon's apology she seems to make a metaphorical comparison of herself to A Game of Thrones character and actually refers to Taylor Swift and Ryan Reynolds as dragons that text reads if you ever get around to watching Game of Thrones you'll appreciate that I kisi and like her I happen to have a few dragons for better or worse but usually for better because my dragons also protect those I fight for so really we all benefit
from those gorgeous Monsters of mine you will too I I can promise you now the mention of Lively's Dragon Friends appears to be directly referenced in this voice note and damn right you got great friends if if that's how you felt and they knew that and we should all have friends like that um aside from the fact that they're two of the most creative people on the planet um the three of you guys together it's unbelievable talk about energy and just to force all three of you but I just wanted you to know that I
didn't need that because it's really good and it's going to make the movie sing we've also discussed the alleged tension between these two during their onset interactions where Lively claims that she felt uncomfortable with what she described as intrusive behavior from baldoni while baldoni insists their working relationship was positive that he was genuinely excited about what they could build together and this is reflected in the next part of this voice message where he expresses excitement at spending more time with her I'm just excited to spend time with you I'm excited to to to be in
your sphere and your presence and for us to share creative um juices together although that sounds terrible now baldoni also argued that in his lawsuit that because Lively allegedly felt comfortable enough to get vulnerable with him and Converse casually he felt he could reciprocate that energy so listen to this next part from the voice memo you and I have been trying to build a relationship which I think we've done successfully I mean here we are uh talking like this uh me and my phone at 2 in the morning but largely via text and voice note
and that I will be honest with you that is not my biggest strength um I love being with people and being in in somebody's um uh in somebody's space and being face to face and I feel like that's where I excel I'm just really looking forward to spending time together um and I think that's going to really go along way for our chemistry which I believe is there so Justin baldon's lawsuit suggests that he feared the potential difficulties or repercussions of what he could face if he didn't comply with Blake Lively's request particularly when Lively
allegedly texted him referencing you know the influence of her husband Ryan Reynolds and Taylor Swift the text reportedly reads they again referencing Ryan Reynolds and Taylor Swift also know I'm not always good at making sure I'm seen and utilized for fear of threatening egos or fear of affecting the ease of the process they Don't Give A blank about that and because of that everyone listens to them with immense respect and enthusiasm so I guess I have to stop worrying about people liking me again this seems to be what facilitated this voice memo now baloni appears
to apologize for any discomfort that Lively may have felt in the past and ironically assures her that her experience on it ends with us will be very different or at least that he hoped it would be I am so sorry you have been through what you've been through with these other filmmakers and producers or whoever the people were that you worked with it just pissed me off those kids that I I'm just still kind of Blown Away that this is the industry that we're in and that you've experienced that as a woman and I know
I don't need to say it but that's not at all going to be or will be hopefully it's not been the experience with me but as he expresses hope that her experience will be positive he also goes on to say in kind of an interesting way that he's excited to work with her and in his words have all of her there's nothing more exciting to me like that I get to work with Blake Lively and have her all of her I that's what I want now I'm not suggesting that's a sexual reference but it is
that phrasing an interesting way to express his enthusiasm about working with somebody right and Balon concludes the voice message by reaffirming his dedication to it ends with us emphasizing his collaboration with a domestic violence organization to ensure the film resonates authentically helps people heal and that's important because apparently they had two different ways they marketed the film he focused on the domestic violence aspect of the film whereas Blake Lively was actually criticized for making it seem light-hearted and bring your florals and bring your friends and I wonder if that's going to be an important point
in that voice memo but he ends however with something that is likely supposed to be a humorous reference to Lively's personal and family life but take a listen I'm going to stop rambling cuz it's been 6 minutes and 30 seconds so the I'm sorry you probably have kids all over you and a baby on your boob and you're listening to me ramble at 2 in the morning uh I hope you're feeling better and uh give Ryan my love thank you for for sending me that means the world to me that you trust me with your
feelings and your thoughts like that and um I can't wait to spend more time with you okay I'm done cutting myself off good night okay so from a legal point of view it is hard to say who this voice note helps more right so on one hand Bon could say look I was respectful of her I acques to her if there were any issues that she felt I was always receptive I'm not the person that she has portrayed me to be and by him apologizing it's almost showing the power Dynamic right that she had the
power here she had the control not me would I really be in a position to create a hostile work environment and sexually harass someone as powerful as Blake Lively that's an argument on the other hand the very fact that he left her a voice note at 2: a.m. and made arguably strange comments wanting all of her I'm just excited to spend time with you even allegedly talked about her boob that in and of itself could be argued by a well-seasoned lawyer to be a form of harassment he was the director sure Hollywood sets are different
than offices but workplace discrimination and harassment and hostile work environments they all come into play and even well-intentioned statements or actions could be illegal and again him acknowledging mistakes and issues that he may have caused or will cause you know did he wrong her in some way again I'm torn on who this voice note benefits and if it was actually released by baldon's side and sure we don't know for sure but if it was was this a good idea look it seems the idea is reversing the public narrative in his favor right that would be
the goal of putting all this out there in the public this the way to do it so hopefully we'll get a little bit more clarity on that but by the way this is the second major piece of evidence to emerge since baldoni filed his lawsuit against Blake Lively so just last week Brian fredman again baldon's attorney released behind the scenes footage from a romantic Montage onset which he argues shows Lively wasn't uncomfortable around Boni however Lively's team claims the footage proves she was in Lively's complaint she alleges that Bon broke character during the scene made
an off-hand comment like it smells so good when he was near her part of her lawsuit reads Mr baldoni was caressing Miss Lively with his mouth in a way that had nothing to do with their roles When Miss Lively later objected to this Behavior Mr baldon's response was I'm not even attracted to you this is how that interaction played out on camera getting beard on you today I'm probably getting on you well it's not B it's my body makeup that's part of the footage by the way and after it was dropped frean announced plans to
launch a website containing every text and email exchange between baldoni and Lively to prove that he's not the guilty party and in response Lively's lawyers have filed a motion to try to stop fredman from publicly disclosing case details this reads in part his conduct threatens to and will materially Prejudice both the Lively case and the Wayfair Case by tainting the jury pool because his statements are deliberately aimed at undermining the character credibility reputation of numerous relevant parties and likewise includes information the lawyer knows or reasonably should know is likely to be inadmissible as evidence at
trial so an initial pre-trial conference is currently scheduled for next Monday to seemingly address this pre-trial publicity and what was released and we're going to expect to hear arguments regarding this on both sides we are going to be covering that hearing live outside the courtroom and also on our long crime YouTube page so I encourage everybody to check it out but that is all we have for you right now here on sidebar thank you so much for joining us and as always please subscribe YouTube Apple podcast Spotify wherever you should get your podcast I'm Jesse
Weber I'll speak to you next time [Music]
