The war between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni just got a whole lot uglier, and this time, the muscle is doing the talking. In a stunning new twist to the It Ends With Us saga that has consumed Hollywood, Blake’s personal trainer has officially entered the chat with a sworn declaration that paints Baldoni in a seriously shady light.
Don Saladino, the fitness guru responsible for sculpting Blake’s physique for years, is ripping the lid off a private phone call he had with the director that left him feeling totally creeped out. According to explosive court documents obtained by press, Saladino claims Baldoni went behind Blake’s back to fish for information about her weight, using an excuse that the trainer simply isn’t buying.
This isn’t just a petty squabble on set anymore. This is full-blown legal warfare, and the allegations of “fat-shaming” are taking center stage as we inch closer to a trial that promises to be the celebrity smackdown of the decade. Buckle up, because the details of this phone call are absolutely cringe-worthy.
The Phone Call From Hell
According to the legal filing, Saladino hardly knew Baldoni. They had communicated “a handful of times,” mostly over text in February , where Saladino was helping the director with some nutrition tips and workout advice. Saladino made it clear in the docs: he never met Baldoni in person and never even considered him a real client. His loyalty was percent to Blake.
But then came the call that changed everything. Saladino alleges that out of the blue, Baldoni rang him up with a very specific, very personal question about his leading lady.
“I recall that Mr. Baldoni asked me how much Ms. Lively would weigh by the start of filming,” Saladino stated in the court declaration. The reason? Baldoni claimed he needed to know for a “scripted lift scene” to see if he could actually pick her up.
Saladino’s reaction? Immediate red flags. He says the inquiry made him feel “very uncomfortable.” In his world, you don’t just call up a trainer and ask for a client’s number on the scale without their permission. It is a massive breach of privacy and totally against the unwritten rules of Hollywood fitness.
“This is literally so invasive. Who calls someone’s trainer to ask how heavy they are? If you have back issues, talk to the stunt coordinator!”
Calling Out the ‘Dishonesty’
Saladino isn’t just saying the call was awkward; he is practically calling Baldoni a liar in sworn legal documents. The trainer wasn’t buying the “I need to know for the lift” excuse for a second. Why? Because he knew exactly what kind of shape Baldoni was in.
“I felt that Mr. Baldoni’s explanation for his question was dishonest,” Saladino blasted in the docs. He pointed out that based on Baldoni’s own workout regimen — which included heavy back extensions — the actor was more than capable of lifting Blake without needing to run the numbers.
“He would easily be able to perform a lift in a range that would include Ms. Lively,” Saladino insisted. The implication here is massive: if he didn’t need to know for safety, why was he asking? The trainer seems to believe it was a power move, or worse, a subtle way to shame his costar before cameras even started rolling.
The Fallout With Blake
Here is where it gets heartbreaking. Saladino didn’t keep this shady interaction to himself. He refused to answer Baldoni’s prying question and immediately took the info back to Blake. The reaction from the Gossip Girl icon was exactly what you would expect.
“Lively seemed embarrassed and hurt that Mr. Baldoni had asked about her weight without her permission,” Saladino claimed. Imagine preparing for a massive role, training your heart out, and then finding out your director and costar is secretly calling your friends to check if you are “too heavy” to lift.
This incident seems to be the smoking gun in Blake’s sexual harassment lawsuit, where she alleges Baldoni’s behavior caused “severe emotional distress.” It feeds directly into the narrative that the set of It Ends With Us was a toxic nightmare specifically designed to make Blake feel small.
“Blake deserves so much better than this. Imagine having your director treat you like cargo instead of a costar. Team Blake all the way.”
Baldoni’s ‘Bad Back’ Defense
Of course, Justin Baldoni isn’t taking these accusations lying down. His legal team has been working overtime to spin this narrative, painting the director as a victim of chronic pain rather than a villain. They have previously clapped back at the “fat-shaming” claims, insisting that Justin was just trying to protect his fragile back.
In their response, Baldoni’s lawyers argued that the allegation “is based on a single instance” where Baldoni, suffering from “chronic back problems,” privately asked a professional for advice. They claim he did it “discreetly, outside the workplace and outside Lively’s hearing” to avoid embarrassing her.
The defense is trying to minimize the whole thing, calling it a “petty slight” that Blake is blowing out of proportion. They argue that even if it was a sly dig, it is “simply too trivial to constitute sexual harassment.” Basically, they are telling Blake to toughen up and stop making a federal case out of a safety check.
Legal Warfare Intensifies
This court declaration is just the latest grenade launched in a legal battle that has turned into a scorched-earth campaign. Remember, Blake sued Baldoni in December for sexual harassment. Baldoni fired back with his own lawsuit in January , but that case was tossed out of court six months later.
Now, with Baldoni’s countersuit dismissed, all eyes are on Blake’s upcoming trial. Despite a judge begging these two to settle their differences privately and save everyone the headache, neither side seems willing to blink. The hate runs deep, folks.
The trial is slated to kick off on May , and if these preliminary filings are any indication, it is going to be a bloodbath. We are talking texts, emails, and testimony that will likely rip the polite veneer off Hollywood’s nicest celebrities.
“I cannot wait for the trial. The tea is going to be piping hot. This is better than the movie plot!”
Is It Safety or Shade?
The core of this dispute comes down to intent. Was Justin Baldoni genuinely worried about throwing out his back during a romantic scene, or was he playing mind games with his leading lady? Saladino’s testimony suggests the latter, portraying the question as unnecessary and “dishonest.”
It is a classic he-said-she-said, but having a third party like Saladino — a respected industry pro — verify the “uncomfortable” nature of the call is a huge win for Blake’s team. It corroborates her feelings of being targeted and adds weight (no pun intended) to her claims of a hostile work environment.
Meanwhile, Baldoni’s rep has slammed the accusations as “completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious.” They are sticking to the story that this is a smear campaign designed to ruin the director’s reputation.
The Countdown to May
As we count down the days to the trial, expect more leaks, more declarations, and more mudslinging. The cast has largely stayed silent or sided with Blake, leaving Baldoni on an island. But with his legal team fighting tooth and nail to dismiss the harassment claims as “trivial,” this could go either way.
Will the jury see a cautious director with a bad back, or a manipulative costar trying to undermine his lead actress? One thing is for certain: by the time this trial is over, the drama behind the scenes of It Ends With Us will be more famous than the movie itself.
Stay tuned. If a simple phone call about a workout plan can cause this much chaos, imagine what else is hiding in those legal files waiting to be unsealed.
