A Sony executive has been forced to explain why she made a seemingly explosive comment about It Ends With Us star Blake Lively.
Andrea Giannetti, the vice president of production and senior creative at Sony Pictures, described Lively, 38, a “f–king terrorist” while speaking to producer Jamey Heath about Lively’s threat to leave the production. Per People, Giannetti’s testimony was unsealed on January 20 ahead of a summary judgment hearing in Lively’s lawsuit against the movie’s director and star Justin Baldoni.
According to Giannetti’s testimony, the VP admitted she grew frustrated after Lively threatened to walk away from the film unless her concerns about Baldoni were appropriately addressed. Lively sued Baldoni for sexual harassment in December 2024.
Lively’s threat came after she presented a 17-point list of changes she wanted to be made without any revision.
Giannetti confirmed she used the phrase to describe Lively and added that, at the time, Sony had invested $28 million into the movie. If Lively backed out, the studio worried the movie would go unreleased. As she put it, “There was a tremendous amount of money that had been invested and spent, and we had to finish the movie or it was unreleasable.”
Sony VP denied knowing Blake Lively was uncomfortable while filming It Ends With Us
Giannetti also denied knowing Lively had claimed Baldoni and Heath acted inappropriately when the actress initially raised concerns in May 2024. She confirmed she did know Lively made the threat to leave.
People also reported that even though Giannetti used harsh language to describe Lively ahead of the film’s release, her attitude changed once it became clear the movie was successful. “Blake, $50 million!! Your blood, sweat, tears, brilliant smarts, heart and soul in every single frame,” she texted Lively in August 2024.
“My God, it’s incredible. Thank you 50 million times. And it’s only Saturday night,” the message continued. Giannetti also confirmed the celebratory messages were in response to the movie’s enormous box office success.
Jenny Slate also complained to Sony about Justin Baldoni
The unsealed court documents also reveal Lively’s costar Jenny Slate, who starred as Baldoni’s sister in the movie, complained about the director’s behavior — and that Giannetti was aware of that complaint.
In a series of released texts, Slate insisted she and Lively both told Giannetti of their concerns and the VP “agree[d] with us.” In separate messages Slate also described Baldoni as “truly a false ally” and added that she was uninterested in doing anything that woudl support “the image that he’s crafting as a ‘male feminist.’”
Attorney Sigrid McCawley, a legal representative for Lively, said in a statement shared January 20: “As we head to trial, only Ms. Lively’s claims against the defendants remain. The Court dismissed Wayfarer’s retaliatory countersuit in its entirety last June.”
She continued: “The newly unsealed evidence contains never-before seen testimony, messages and evidence from numerous eyewitnesses backing the claims in Ms. Lively’s lawsuit. The evidence includes Ms. Lively’s own testimony describing the harassment she faced, as well as new evidence from numerous women describing their own disturbing experiences. The newly unsealed evidence shows the concerns of Ms. Lively and others were documented in real-time as early as Spring 2023, and Wayfarer understood them as ‘sexual harassment’ concerns. The evidence also documents how Wayfarer refused to investigate, but instead attempted to ‘bury’ Ms. Lively and others who spoke up through retaliation.”
