A Texas crisis communications specialist has sued for defamation after the actor pulled him into her legal fight with co-star and director over their film, 鈥淚t Ends With Us.鈥�
and his company, Street Relations, filed the $7 million lawsuit in federal court in Texas on Tuesday. It says he had nothing to do with any campaign to harm Lively's reputation as she alleged in a court filing.
Wallace is not among the defendants in his production company and publicists, in which she alleges sexual and other harassment during the production and a campaign to smear her after it. The crisis specialist is named in the court papers and the New York Times story published on the day the series of legal battles began in December when .
Lively鈥檚 lawyers said in a statement that Wallace鈥檚 lawsuit 鈥渋s not just a publicity stunt.鈥�
鈥淚t is transparent retaliation in response to allegations contained within a sexual harassment and retaliation complaint that Ms. Lively filed with the California Civil Rights Department,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淲hile this lawsuit will be dismissed, we are pleased that Mr. Wallace has finally emerged from the shadows, and that he too will be held accountable in federal court.鈥�
In a filing last week in Hays County, Texas, that seeks a deposition from Wallace, Lively alleges he was used by publicists working with Baldoni to weaponize 鈥渁 digital army around the country, including in New York and Los Angeles, to create, seed, manipulate, and advance disparaging content that appeared to be authentic on social media platforms and internet chat forums.鈥�
Wallace's lawsuit says neither he nor his company "had anything to do with the alleged sexual harassment, retaliation, failure to investigate or aiding and abetting the alleged harassment or alleged retaliation.鈥�
It says the actor's Texas filing 鈥渃onceded that Lively has no facts supporting the allegations she made against Wallace and Street," which is why she now seeks to investigate the extent of his conduct.
After Lively sued Baldoni, he filed his own federal lawsuit against her and her husband, 鈥淒eadpool鈥� star , accusing them of defamation and extortion and seeking at least $400 million in damages.
Baldoni had already sued The New York Times for libel, and his former publicist filed a .
鈥淚t Ends With Us,鈥� an adaptation of that begins as a romance but takes a dark turn into domestic violence, was released in August, with a domestic total of nearly $150 million. The success was followed by near constant turmoil over its production and promotion.
Andrew Dalton, The Associated Press
