Actress Amber Heard on Monday became the latest celebrity to speak out on behalf of the ‘Gossip Girl’ alum over what she says was a coordinated social media effort to tarnish her name.
Over the weekend, Blake Lively filed a complaint claiming that Justin Baldoni and a lead producer had behaved unacceptably during the filming of the box office hit ‘It Ends With Us’.
The allegations included that Baldoni – who also directed the film – had spoken inappropriately about his sex life, and had sought to alter the film to include sex scenes that were not in the script and had not been agreed to.
They also detailed how lead producer Jamey Heath had watched Lively while she was topless, despite having been asked to turn away.
But the complaint goes into great detail – including with texts and emails – on a PR campaign to wreck her reputation and to divert attention from any public comments she might make about the men’s alleged misbehavior.
This was “a carefully crafted, coordinated, and resourced retaliatory scheme to silence her, and others from speaking out about the hostile environment that Mr Baldoni and Mr Heath created,” the complaint says.
Ryan Reynolds blocked Justin Baldoni months before Blake Lively’s lawsuit
It includes allegations that the two men hired a crisis PR team that amplified or planted negative stories about Lively on social media platforms.
“You know we can bury anyone,” Melissa Nathan, a member of the team, is alleged to have said, according to messages contained in the complaint.
Heard’s ex-husband Johnny Depp hired the same PR team during the high-profile defamation trial between the couple in 2022, in which a jury unanimously found that Heard defamed Depp over allegations he abused her.
“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 carried by NBC News.
“I saw this firsthand and up close. It’s as horrifying as it is destructive.”
Heard’s support came on the heels of a joint statement by America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, and Alexis Bledel, who starred with Lively in ‘The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants’.
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