Blake Lively says the “mean girl” label cost her $40.5 million, and a May trial with Justin Baldoni is coming

Blake Lively has filed new court documents detailing the full scale of the damages she is seeking in her legal battle with director Justin Baldoni, claiming that the widespread labelling of her as a “mean girl,” “bully,” and “tone deaf” online caused reputational harm worth between $36.5 million and $40.5 million. The figures come from an expert assessment commissioned by Lively’s legal team, which determined that more than 176 million online impressions carrying those negative characterisations were generated, directly damaging her public standing and, by extension, her commercial value.

The reputational damage claim forms part of a much greater financial demand. In total, Blake Lively is seeking approximately $161 million from Justin Baldoni’s company, broken down across several categories: roughly $56 million in past and future lost earnings, approximately $49 million in damages attributed to losses at her haircare business, around $22 million linked to her Betty Buzz beverage brand, and additional sums, including the reputational harm figure outlined above.

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Baldoni’s team disputes the numbers

Justin Baldoni and his legal representatives have rejected the financial claims as presented, pushing back on the methodology and figures put forward in Lively’s court filings. The dispute over damages is expected to form a central battleground at trial, which is currently scheduled to begin on May 18, 2026, in New York.

The case has already seen significant developments at the pre-trial stage. Earlier in April, the presiding judge dismissed the majority of Lively’s claims relating to her experience on the set of the film It Ends With Us, narrowing the scope of the trial considerably. What remains, including the reputational damage and business losses claims, will now go before a jury next month.

How the “mean girl” narrative became a legal argument

The core of Blake Lively’s reputational damage claim rests on the argument that a coordinated or amplified negative narrative about her character spread across social media and online platforms during and after the promotional period for It Ends With Us. Lively’s expert quantified those impressions at more than 176 million, arguing that the volume and consistency of the messaging — centred on the specific language of “mean girl” and “bully”- constituted a definable, measurable harm to her professional reputation rather than ordinary public criticism.

Whether a jury accepts that framing, and the nine-figure damages attached to it, will be among the most closely watched questions when the trial opens in New York on May 18.