Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel and America Ferrera have posted a joint statement in support of their "sister" Blake Lively after she filed a complaint against Justin Baldoni, her director and co-star on It Ends With Us.
"As Blake's friends and sisters for over twenty years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights back against the reported campaign waged to destroy her reputation," the statement, posted on Amber and America's Instagram accounts began.
"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."
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants stars became sisters
The three starred with Blake in the 2005 film The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants film and have remained very close friends.
It continued: "Most upsetting is the unabashed exploitation of domestic violence survivors' stories to silence a woman who asked for safety. The hypocrisy is astounding.
"We are struck by the reality that even if a woman is as strong, celebrated, and resourced as our friend Blake, she can face forceful retaliation for daring to ask for a safe working environment".
The group added that they "are inspired by our sister's courage to stand up for herself and others," and asked for anyone seeking further information to read the full legal complaint in the New York Times.
Amber was a 'confidante'
Amber, 41, also shared a link on Stories, and added that she had been a "confidante" for Blake during the "painful" filming experience.
© Andrew TothOn Friday December 20, Blake filed the complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, a precursor to a lawsuit, accusing Justin of "severe emotional distress," and alleging "sinister retaliatory tactics" in an effort to smear her name.
The documents, which HELLO! has seen, and which were first reported by TMZ, allege a hostile work environment that included adding intimacy scenes that had not been preapproved and keeping an open set during intimate scenes.
Blake accuses Justin of workplace harrassment
Blake also accused Justin and his production partner Jamey Heath of showing her explicit images and videos, and asking her about her personal sex life.
A workplace meeting was held "with all parties" to address concerns – it was also attended by Blake's husband Ryan Reynolds – and during that meeting Blake's team insisted she was "willing to forego a more formal HR process in favor of everyone returning to work and finishing the Film as long as the set is safe moving forward".
© InstagramWayfarer Productions, the production company, agreed to the demands but also agreed to disagree on specifics that had been alleged.
Production resumed the next day.
However, the complaint also alleges that Justin went on to hire a crisis PR team to intentionally slander Blake's name and reputation.
Justin and his crisis PR team prepared
Texts and emails between Justin, her publicist Jennifer Abel and crisis PR manager Melissa Nathan reveal that Justin discovered Ryan had blocked him on social media in the weeks before the film's release, and it was this that led to Justin fearing that the details of Blake's initial complaints would leak.
Together, with other digital media managers, they prepared a plan "should BL or RR come forward with negative messaging".
"The emotional impact on Ms. Lively has been extreme, not only affecting her, but her family, including her husband and four children," the filing goes on to allege.
Colleen Hoover shares support
It Ends With Us was an adaptation of Colleen Hoover's best-selling novel an explores themes of domestic violence and healing as it tells the story of Lily Bloom (Blake) as she navigates a complicated love triangle involving her current partner, Ryle Kincaid (Justin), and her first love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar).
Colleen also voiced her support for Blake on social media. "You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive, and patient since the day we met," Hoover wrote. "Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt."
