Amber Heard Speaks Out on Blake Lively’s Allegations After Justin Baldoni Hired Johnny Depp’s Crisis PR Team: ‘I Saw This Firsthand’ and ‘It’s Horrifying’
Amber Heard has spoken out in support of Blake Lively amid her allegations of sexual harassment against “It Ends With Us” director and co-star Justin Baldoni. In a complaint filed on Friday published by The New York Times, Lively accused Baldoni of attempting to mount a smear campaign against her and it was noted that he had hired the same crisis PR team as Heard’s ex-husband Johnny Depp during their highly publicized 2022 defamation trial.
“Social media is the absolute personification of the classic saying ‘A lie travels halfway around the world before truth can get its boots on,'” Heard said in a statement on the situation to NBC News. “I saw this firsthand and up close. It’s as horrifying as it is destructive.”
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In the 2022 trial, a jury unanimously found that Heard defamed Depp. He was awarded $5 million in punitive damages and $10 million in compensatory damages. Heard, who now lives in Spain and has largely stepped back from Hollywood, was only awarded $2 million in compensatory damages.
Lively’s filing includes texts and emails between Baldoni and his PR team detailing their online strategy after rumors of an on-set feud between the two began brewing. “Mr. Baldoni and his Wayfarer associates embarked on a sophisticated press and digital plan in retaliation for Ms. Lively exercising her legally-protected right to speak up about their misconduct on the set, with the additional objective of intimidating her and anyone else from revealing in public what actually occurred,” the complaint alleges.
It continues to allege that subcontractors were hired to “weaponize a digital army around the country from New York to Los Angeles to create, seed, and promote content that appeared to be authentic on social media platforms and internet chat forums.”
A text exchange included in the complaint appears to show members of Baldoni’s team celebrating when those on social media began to turn against Lively. One member of the team allegedly emailed another that Baldoni “doesn’t realise [sic] how lucky he is right now we need to press on him just how fucking lucky.”
Bryan Freedman, who is representing Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios, called Lively’s complaint “shameful” and full of “categorically false accusations.” In a statement to Variety responding to Heard’s comment on Monday, Freedman said: “TAG PR operated as any other crisis management firm would when hired by a client experiencing threats by two extremely powerful people with unlimited resources. The standard scenario planning TAG PR drafted proved unnecessary as audiences found Lively’s own actions, interviews and marketing during the promotional tour distasteful, and responded organically to that which the media themselves picked up on. It’s ironic that the New York Times, through their effort to “uncover” an insidious PR effort, played directly into the hands of Lively’s own dubious PR tactics by publishing leaked personal text exchanges that lack critical context — the very same tactics she’s accusing the firm of implementing.”
Representatives for Baldoni’s PR team and Depp declined to comment on Heard’s statement. Representatives for Heard did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
According to the complaint, a meeting was held in January to address Lively’s concerns when returning to the “It Ends With Us” set after the actors and writers strikes. During the meeting, for which Lively’s husband Ryan Reynolds was present, Lively alleged that Baldoni had discussed her weight with her trainer, pressed her to disclose her religious beliefs and talked about his sex life in inappropriate ways. She also allegedly demanded that Baldoni not add any more sex scenes than what was already in the script, which the film’s distributor, Sony Pictures, reportedly approved according to the complaint.
Since Lively’s filing, several big names have spoken up in support of her, including “It Ends With Us” author Colleen Hoover. “You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met,” Hoover wrote, sharing a picture of her and Lively hugging. “Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt.”
On Sunday night, Lively’s “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” co-stars America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn and Alexis Bledel also posted a message of support, writing in a statement on social media: “Throughout the filming of ‘It Ends with Us,’ we saw her summon the courage to ask for a safe workplace for herself and colleagues on set, and we are appalled to read the evidence of a premeditated and vindictive effort that ensued to discredit her voice. Most upsetting is the unabashed exploitation of domestic violence survivors’ stories to silence a woman who asked for safety. The hypocrisy is astounding.”
“A Simple Favor” director Paul Feig also stood up for Lively in a post on X, saying that “she truly did not deserve any of this smear campaign against her. I think it’s awful she was put through this.”
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