Justin Baldoni and his production banner Wayfarer could be on the hook for a steep legal bill to litigate allegations of sexual harassment on the set of It Ends With Us.
Wayfarer’s insurer for the film, Harco National Insurance, filed a lawsuit in New York federal court on Monday seeking a court order that it has no duty to pay legal fees for the production company or its officers. It says that the alleged misconduct occurred before the effective date of the policy and that it wasn’t informed of Blake Lively’s complaints, a precursor to the sprawling litigation, during the filming of the movie.
The move adds another wrinkle to a labyrinthian web of lawsuits over the shooting and public relations machinations behind It Ends With Us. Lively first initiated the legal battle against Baldoni for alleged sexual harassment, accusing him and his team of marshaling a plan to undermine her reputation in retaliation for speaking up about misconduct on the set of the movie. This sparked a $400 million countersuit from the director, who claimed that Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, orchestrated a campaign to smear him. The saga has gripped Hollywood for months, with extensive legal maneuvering as the two sides look for an edge in court.
Baldoni is represented by Bryan Freedman, a prominent lawyer and bulldog negotiator known for aggressively litigating cases. Some of the moves he’s made involve bringing a sister lawsuit against Wayfarer’s former publicist for breach of contract and subpoenaing Taylor Swift, who he claimed was the target of an extortion effort by Lively.
According to Monday’s complaint, Wayfarer had two, one year-long policies that insured the production from July 2023 to 2025. While the lawsuit from Lively was filed in December 2024, she raised claims of sexual harassment that allegedly occurred from April to June 2023 – before the effective date of the policy, Harco says.
Also at issue: Wayfarer allegedly neglecting to inform the insurer of Lively’s complaints, even though it was during the timeframe in which the production was insured. These complaints were raised in a November 2023 email from Lively’s lawyers to Wayfarer, according to the lawsuit.
The production company in July 2024 submitted an application for renewal of the policy, which advised notice of any known circumstances that could result in a legal claim. The policy states that Harco “will not provide coverage for claims or incidents which the applicant is aware of prior to the inception date of any coverage that is offered and accepted.”
“Despite this notice, and despite the November 2023 Demand and additional allegations of sexual harassment presented by Lively during a January 2024 meeting, Wayfarer’s 2024 Renewal Application advised Harco that there was no claim, notice of potential claim, or any situation that may give rise to a claim within the last 12 months,” writes Evan Shapiro, a lawyer for Harco, in the complaint.
Wayfarer, which didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, had a $2 million policy for its directors and officers and the same amount in coverage for employment practices and third party liability, according to the lawsuit. It gave notice of Lively’s lawsuit in April and asked for indemnity under the 2024 policy. Harco denied the claim. In a June letter, it explained that there are circumstances that may wholly or partially limit coverage.
If Harco’s ask for a court order declaring that it has no duty to pay Wayfarer’s legal fees is granted, the production company and Baldoni may be looking at a six-figure legal bill to continue litigating the cases. The legal battle could become a battle of deeper pockets, with Steve Sarowitz, Wayfarer’s billionaire cofounder backing Baldoni, and Reynolds backing Lively.
