Blake Lively has dragged two prominent media figures into her contentious legal war with Justin Baldoni.
The âIt Ends With Usâ star subpoenaed right-wing activist and commentator Candace Owens and infamous blogger Perez Hilton, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr.
TMZ broke the news Tuesday that Lively, 37, believed the media stars had colluded with Baldoni, 41, and used their âsizable digital platformsâ to launch a smear campaign against her.
Blake Lively has dragged two prominent media figures into her contentious legal war with Justin Baldoni. WireImage
The âIt Ends With Usâ star subpoenaed right-wing activist and commentator Candace Owens. Matt Baron/BEI / Shutterstock
Infamous blogger Perez Hilton, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr., has also been subpoenaed. Getty Images
Owens, for her part, said she learned of the legal filing just moments before the outletâs story went live and had not been personally served with the court documents at the time of publication.
âThis is a hit,â she said on her âCandace Owensâ YouTube channel Tuesday. âThey donât want you to respond to any facts, because they arenât interested in facts. This is a psychological game that they are playing with the masses.â
Owens, 36, also emphatically denied receiving any payment from Baldoni or his team in exchange for her opinions, saying that she was âjust so offendedâ by the implication.
âIt might just be the case that I am beholden to no one, and I say whatever I am thinking at any moment of the day. Thatâs the problem with me. I donât dance for money,â she added.
The latest twist in Livelyâs legal strategy comes weeks after she fought to quash a subpoena Baldoni wanted to issue her former close pal Taylor Swift. GC Images
Baldoni claimed Lively used her famous friendâs influence to take over the direction of âIt Ends With Us.â GC Images
Hilton, 47, laughed off the subpoena order in his own video posted on social media Tuesday.
The blogger claimed that he, too, learned of the legal filing via TMZâs âsurprisingâ story.
âThis is the first time I am hearing of it,â he said. âI have not been served with anything yet, and I also have not communicated with my lawyer, Bryan Freedman, about this, who also represents Baldoni and has not given me any information or influenced me in any way whatsoever.â
Page Six has reached to Baldoniâs reps for comment on the alleged subpoenas but did not hear back.
The latest twist in Livelyâs legal strategy comes weeks after she fought to quash a subpoena Baldoni wanted to issue her former close pal Taylor Swift.
âThe message could not have been clearer. Baldoni was not just dealing with Lively. He was also facing Livelyâs âdragons,’â Baldoniâs legal team previously claimed in a countersuit. GC Images
The director shockingly dropped his probe into Swift in May, however, with a source telling Page Six, âWhen information is voluntarily received, there is no need for subpoenas.â GC Images
The Wayfarer Studios co-founder initially wanted to subpoena the pop superstar, 35, because he claimed Lively used her famous friendâs influence to take over the direction of âIt Ends With Us.â
âThe message could not have been clearer. Baldoni was not just dealing with Lively. He was also facing Livelyâs âdragons,â two of the most influential and wealthy celebrities in the world, who were not afraid to make things very difficult for him,â Freedman previously argued in his clientâs countersuit.
However, in May, Baldoni shockingly dropped his probe into Swift, with a source telling Page Six exclusively at the time, âWhen information is voluntarily received, there is no need for subpoenas.â
It was then revealed that the Grammy winnerâs father, Scott Swift, had allegedly willingly leaked information to Baldoniâs camp, including alleged threats Lively made to his daughter to release private texts, that could potentially help the directorâs legal case.
Lively is suing her former co-star for sexual harassment and other claims after working together on âIt Ends With Us.â GC Images
A trial date for the highly publicized case has been scheduled for March 2026. Variety via Getty Images
Although Swift has tried to distance herself from the drama, she is still linked to the legal battle because the judge in the case recently ruled that Baldoni will have access to the singerâs private texts with Lively.
The âGossip Girlâ alum is suing her former co-star for sexual harassment and other claims. Meanwhile, Baldoniâs countersuit against Lively for defamation and extortion has been dismissed.
A trial date for the highly publicized case has been scheduled for March 2026.