Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni Are Going to Trial — Settlement Talks Collapse After 6 Hours

Hollywood’s messiest legal battle just got a confirmed date. Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni are going to trial — and after six exhausting hours in a New York City courthouse on February 11, 2026, it’s clear that nobody is backing down.

A court-ordered settlement conference was supposed to be the last chance for the two It Ends With Us co-stars to resolve their bitter dispute before a jury gets involved. It didn’t work. Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman walked out of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse and told reporters the talks were “unsuccessful.” The trial is now set for May 18, 2026.

What This Case Is Actually About

Blake Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni in December 2024 with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of their 2024 film and alleging that he and his team then launched a coordinated online smear campaign against her to ruin her reputation before the movie released. She is now suing for approximately $500 million in damages.

Baldoni has denied all allegations and has called the claims “categorically false.” His original $400 million countersuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist was dismissed by a federal judge in June 2025.

The Trial Is Going to Be Explosive

This is not going to be a quiet courtroom proceeding. Blake Lively has confirmed she will take the stand and testify. Her legal team has lined up crew members and witnesses from the set. Internal emails, text messages, and voice memos have already been unsealed — including a Sony executive’s message that reportedly referred to Lively as a “terrorist.”

Taylor Swift has also been dragged in. Unsealed court documents revealed that Swift texted Lively in December 2024 about Baldoni — and Baldoni’s team had previously tried (and failed) to subpoena Swift, claiming Lively used Swift’s celebrity to pressure him on the film’s script rewrite. The judge condemned the subpoena attempt as an abuse of process.

They Arrived Separately and Never Shared a Room

The February 11 conference was the first time Lively and Baldoni had appeared in court at the same time since the lawsuit was filed. Even then, they kept their distance — Lively arrived alone with her team, while Baldoni arrived with his wife Emily. They spent the day in separate courtrooms while a judge shuttled between them. After six hours, they left without speaking to each other or the press.

What Happens Next

With no settlement in sight, both sides are now preparing for a full jury trial. Legal experts expect the trial to last several weeks and to generate headlines daily, as more unsealed documents and celebrity communications become part of the public record. Several insiders have suggested that the case has already cost both stars major career opportunities — Baldoni stepped away from directing the sequel It Starts With Us, while Lively has spoken about the emotional toll on her family.

The trial of the year starts May 18. Share this with your group chat — this one is going to be impossible to look away from.