Justin Baldoni said that Blake Lively dubbed the home office in her New York City abode ‘Buckingham Palace’ in reference to the stream of A-listers that passed through.
The 41-year-old actor-director made the revelation during an October 6, 2025 deposition obtained by People that Baldoni gave amid the ongoing litigation attached to It Ends with Us.
Baldoni said that Lively, 38, and her husband Ryan Reynolds, 49, used the name of the palace as a code to refer to their New York City residence.
‘She used to call it Buckingham Palace, as she said, because so many celebrities walked through there,’ Baldoni said.
Baldoni said that Lively preferred to operate out of the office professionally during production of It Ends with Us.
‘I think that was her office in her penthouse apartment, which was the place that Ms. Lively requested all of our meetings be,’ Baldoni said.
Daily Mail has reached out to reps for Baldoni and Lively for further comment on the story.
Justin Baldoni, 41, said that Blake Lively, 38, dubbed the home office in her New York City abode ‘Buckingham Palace’ in reference to the stream of A-listers that passed through. Pictured 2023
The case is slated to return to court for a January 22 hearing, with a May 18 trial date looming.
The latest news in the case comes as the contentious legal battle between Lively and Baldoni has gone on more than a year.
In December of 2024, Lively named Baldoni in a lawsuit accusing him of sexual harassment, retaliatory conduct, and intentional infliction of emotional stress.
In her lawsuit, the actress accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her in multiple ways – including body shaming her – and orchestrating a smear campaign against her to damage her reputation.
In her lawsuit, Lively named a number of Baldoni’s collaborators, including his company Wayfarer Studios, the studio’s CEO and financial backer, and PR personnel.
Baldoni had initially asked for $250 million in damages from The New York Times, mentioning a report it published on the topic that he claimed was defamatory, then added it to the $400 million lawsuit he filed this past January.
In the suit, Baldoni named Lively, her spouse Ryan Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane, citing the aforementioned report in legal documents. It was thrown out of court this past June. All parties have denied all of the allegations against them.
It Ends with Us earned $148 million in domestic box office and $350 million globally – but whatever goodwill the film garnered has since been overshadowed by the allegations made by its stars.
Lively has past posted to Instagram photos of the NYC home she shares with Ryan Reynolds and their kids
It Ends with Us earned $148 million in domestic box office and $350 million globally – but whatever goodwill the film garnered has since been overshadowed by the allegations made by its stars
Lively and Ryan Reynolds shared a loving moment at the film’s premiere in NYC in 2024
The motion picture, which also starred Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Brandon Sklenar and Kevin McKidd, was based on the 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover.
The storyline of the film centered around a toxic relationship between Lily Bloom (played by Lively) and Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni).
According to a logline for the film, Lily ‘overcomes a traumatic childhood to embark on a new life,’ as ‘a chance meeting with a neurosurgeon sparks a connection but Lily begins to see sides of him that remind her of her parents’ relationship.’
Lively broke out with the 2005 movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants opposite Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel and America Ferrera.
That led to her high-profile role on the TV show Gossip Girl, which she starred on from 2007-2012, playing lead character Serena van der Woodsen.
She has also appeared in movies such as 2010’s The Town, 2016’s The Shallows, 2018’s A Simple Favor and 2020’s The Rhythm Section.
Prior to It Ends with Us, Baldoni was best known for playing the role of Rafael Solano on the TV show Jane the Virgin from 2014–2019.
He also has directed films including 2019’s Five Feet Apart and 2020’s Clouds, and penned the 2021 book Man Enough, which tackled misconceptions of contemporary masculinity.
