Scarlett Johansson Calls Out Odd Timing with Baldoni’s Studio Amid Lively Lawsuit
If you thought the Tinseltown turmoil train had left the station, Scarlett Johansson just hopped on for the ride—right alongside Justin Baldoni’s embattled Wayfarer Entertainment. In a candid chat at the Venice Film Festival press line, Johansson confessed it felt “weird” to partner with Baldoni’s studio just as Blake Lively filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against them last month in Los Angeles Superior Court. Of course, the irony is so thick you could spread it on toast.
Johansson, set to star in a high–stakes psychological thriller produced by Wayfarer, revealed she wasn’t briefed on the Blake Lively litigation when she signed. “I only learned about it through the headlines,” she admitted, eyebrows raised. Sources at People Magazine and Variety confirm that Lively alleges Wayfarer pulled the plug on a small–screen project mere weeks before cameras rolled, leaving her with a multi-million-dollar hole in her schedule. Representatives for Baldoni and Lively have each declined to comment, but the lawsuit’s public filing and Johansson’s own statements leave little room for PR spin.
The fallout could be spectacular. Investors already jittery over ballooning budgets and pandemic hangovers might bail on Johansson’s thriller faster than you can say “lawsuit.” And let’s be honest—when an A-list star admits to “weird timing,” production calendars and promotional tours tend to morph into legal battlegrounds. Hell, last year we watched another boutique studio implode under similar drama; history loves a rerun.
Scarlett tried to juggle optimism with exasperation: “I’m hopeful this resolves quickly, but I’ve learned to prepare for detours.” Translation: Hollywood’s legal detours are seldom scenic. If casting announcements and distribution deals sound less glamorous when courts get involved, welcome to modern moviemaking. Every script is now a contract clause waiting to bite.
One can almost hear the studio accountants sharpening their pencils, calculating how many “day-and-date” streaming windows they’ll have to forgo to settle this mess. Meanwhile, Johansson’s thriller is left dangling in development limbo, a reminder that creative ambition and courtroom drama go together like peanut butter and regrets.
Keep an eye on the Los Angeles Superior Court docket and Deadline’s updates—because if there’s one rule in celebrity cinema, it’s that legal snags never stay behind closed doors. At this point, should we even pretend to be surprised? Bookmark this for the inevitable “I told you so” moment. Anyway, can’t wait to see how this gets worse.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and People Magazine, Variety
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
