Blake Lively is not framing the latest court ruling in her legal battle with Justin Baldoni as a defeat. She is framing it as a reset. After a federal judge dismissed 10 of the 13 claims in her lawsuit, including her sexual harassment claim, Lively responded publicly by saying the heart of her case is still alive and that she is still determined to take it to trial. The remaining claims, including retaliation and breach of contract-related claims, are still moving forward, and the trial is scheduled for May 18.
That is the part that matters most here. Yes, the lawsuit has been significantly narrowed. But no, it has not disappeared.
The judge’s decision did not declare that nothing improper happened. Instead, the ruling turned heavily on legal structure. According to multiple reports, Lively’s sexual harassment claim was dismissed because she was classified as an independent contractor rather than an employee, which meant federal workplace harassment protections under Title VII did not apply in the way her team argued. At the same time, the court left room for many of the underlying allegations to still be examined as part of the retaliation case.
That distinction is important, because it changes the public reading of the case.
If you just look at the headlines, it sounds like the lawsuit was gutted. And in a technical sense, a large part of it was. But the broader conflict between Lively and Baldoni is very much still on. Her team has argued that after she raised concerns about conditions on set, Baldoni and others retaliated against her and tried to damage her reputation. The judge allowed those retaliation-related claims to continue, which means this is still a very live dispute heading toward court.
Lively’s public response leaned into that reality. In her statement, she said she brought the case because of the retaliation she faced after asking for a safe working environment for herself and others. She also used a dragon emoji, which instantly became part of the online conversation because of earlier reports tied to text messages referenced in Baldoni’s now-dismissed countersuit.
And that is what makes this moment so interesting. The legal ruling narrowed the case, but the optics war did not end for even a second.
Baldoni’s side has treated the dismissal as a major vindication. Lively’s side has treated it as a technical setback that does not touch the core of what she says happened. Both sides are now speaking to two audiences at once: the court and the internet.
This is why the case has become bigger than just one on-set dispute. It has turned into a public fight about power, image, workplace boundaries, and what people hear when they see the phrase “claims dismissed.” For some, that means the story is over. Legally, it is not. For others, it means the most serious accusations were weakened. That part is true. But it is also true that the claims still going forward are substantial enough to keep this case in the headlines and in court.
There is also something very Hollywood about the way this is unfolding. The original dispute grew out of It Ends With Us, a film that was already surrounded by intense conversation. Now the movie has become almost secondary to the legal drama around it. Every ruling, statement, and social media post is being read as part of a larger narrative battle.
And Lively’s latest message made one thing very clear: she is not backing off.
Her sexual harassment claim may be gone. Much of the original complaint may be gone. But the retaliation allegations remain, the trial remains, and the fight over what actually happened is far from settled.