- Justin Baldoni’s new lawsuit against Blake Lively references Ryan Reynolds’ “Deadpool” franchise.
- The suit compares reported creative differences on “Deadpool 2” to Lively’s battles with Baldoni on “It Ends with Us.”
- Baldoni also recently claimed that the “Deadpool & Wolverine” character Nicepool was created to mock him.
Not even Deadpool is safe from being named in the continuing legal battle between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively.
A new lawsuit filed Thursday by Baldoni, his associates at Wayfarer Studios, and his publicists against his “In Ends With Us” costar Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and her publicist Leslie Sloane uses the “Deadpool” movies as an example while making the claim that Lively seized control of the production of “It Ends With Us” and usurped Baldoni, the film’s director.
The lawsuit also comes after Baldoni accused Reynolds of mocking him through the “Deadpool & Wolverine” character Nicepool.
Here’s what to know about how the Marvel antihero got embroiled in the Baldoni-Lively feud.
Justin Baldoni and his team claim Ryan Reynolds used the Nicepool character to mock him
In “Deadpool & Wolverine,” Deadpool (Reynolds) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) encounter a variant of Deadpool named Nicepool in a wasteland called The Void.
Unlike Deadpool, Nicepool is agreeable and friendly because “it costs nothing to be kind.” The character also styles his hair in a man bun, has a four-legged companion named Dogpool, and speaks about being a feminist.
“Oh my goodness, wait until you see Ladypool,” he tells Deadpool and Wolverine in one scene, referring to a female variant played by Lively. “She is gorgeous. She just had a baby too and [you] can’t even tell.”
In response, Deadpool says, “I don’t think you’re supposed to say that.”
“That’s OK,” Nicepool replies, putting his hand over his heart. “I identify as a feminist.”
Nicepool returns later in the movie when more variants fight Deadpool and Wolverine. In the battle, Reynolds’ character uses Nicepool as a human shield against Ladypool’s bullets. Nicepool dies shortly after.
In an interview on “The Megyn Kelly Show” in early January, Bryan Freeman, Baldoni’s lawyer, said it’s “pretty obvious” that Nicepool is a riff on Baldoni.
“If your wife is sexually harassed, you don’t make fun of Justin Baldoni,” Freedman said. “You don’t make fun of the situation. You take it very seriously. You file HR complaints. You raise the issue and you follow a legal process. What you don’t do is mock the person and turn it into a joke. There’s no question it relates to Justin.”
Around the time of the “Megyn Kelly Show” interview, Freedman reportedly sent a litigation hold letter to Marvel president Kevin Feige, Disney CEO Bob Iger, and “Deadpool” director Tim Miller in regards to Baldoni’s “anticipated claims” and Reynolds, Lively, and others.
Variety, who viewed the litigation letter, reported that Baldoni felt that Reynolds intentionally made fun of him through the Nicepool character.
Baldoni has previously given a TED Talk and wrote an essay for Romper about why he’s a feminist. Discussions about Lively’s post-baby weight were also mentioned in Lively’s California Civil Rights Department complaint and a federal complaint against Baldoni. According to Lively, Baldoni criticized her body and weight.
The letter asked Marvel and Disney, who produced and distributed “Deadpool & Wolverine,” to preserve “any and all documents relating to or reflecting a deliberate attempt to mock, harass, ridicule, intimidate, or bully Baldoni through the character of ‘Nicepool.'”
Baldoni’s latest lawsuit references ‘Deadpool’ director Tim Miller’s departure from the 2018 sequel
Baldoni’s latest lawsuit accuses Lively of hijacking creative control of “It Ends With Us” and lists her possible motivations for doing so. Among the potential reasons is one related to her husband’s work with the “Deadpool” franchise.
“Lively may have felt driven to match her star husband Ryan Reynolds, who is widely reported to have insisted on taking so much control over the film “Deadpool 2″ that the director, Tim Miller, left the production,” the lawsuit reads. “Seeing the fame and success that Reynolds commanded, she may have adopted his oft-repeated pattern wholesale to seize her own power and control.”
Miller directed the first “Deadpool” movie, which was released in 2016. He was reportedly set to direct the sequel but left due to creative differences with Reynolds, who stars in and executive produces the films.
In a 2016 interview with GQ, Reynolds said that he had a clear vision for the character and the first movie.
He called Miller “a visual-effects wizard,” but said he felt like the expert on the project’s character and tone.
“I’ve also been with this thing the longest out of anybody, aside from the guys that wrote the comics,” Reynolds said. “Eleven years I’ve been trying to get this Sisyphus rock up the hill, and it kept rolling back on top of me. So I’m gonna be all the fuck over it from the moment it starts to the moment it finishes.”
Miller opened up about his departure during an appearance on KRCW’s “The Business” podcast in 2019.
“I don’t mind having a debate, but if I can’t win, I don’t want to play,” Miller said. “And I don’t think you can negotiate every creative decision, there’s too many to make. So Ryan’s the face of the franchise, and he was the most important component of that, by far. So if he decides he wants to control it, then he’s going to control it.”
Reps for Lively, Reynolds, Miller, Marvel, and Disney didn’t immediately respond to Business Insider’s requests for comment.
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