By now, you've probably heard about the It Ends With Us lawsuit revolving around Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. Lively has accused her co-star and director of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment, and orchestrating a smear campaign against her.
She's also claimed that Baldoni engaged in unscripted physical intimacy, discussed his sex life inappropriately, and tried to add a graphic sex scene without consent. Baldoni countersued, alleging Lively attempted to seize control of the film's editing process and damaged his reputation to fix hers.
Both parties have denied the other's accusations and each has shared evidence backing up at least some of their allegations. Now, though, Deadpool & Wolverine has been dragged into the heated back-and-forth.
Baldoni's attorney Bryan Freeman recently appeared on Megyn Kelly's show to discuss the legal battle and was asked about speculation that Ryan Reynolds' Nicepool was used to mock the actor following his on-set clashes with Reynolds' wife.
Arguing that there's "no question it relates to Justin," Freeman said the "hair bun" and "the comment about the pregnancy" made it "pretty obvious what’s being done."
"What I make of that is that if your wife is sexually harassed, you don’t make fun of Justin Baldoni. You don’t make fun of the situation," he added. "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."
"But again, if somebody is seriously sexually harassed, you don’t make fun of it. It’s a serious issue," the lawyer concluded.
In Deadpool & Wolverine, the title characters encounter Nicepool who says, "Oh my goodness, wait until you’ve seen Ladypool. She is gorgeous. She just had a baby too and [you] can't even tell." When the Merc with the Mouth responds that he shouldn't have said that, the Variant replies, "That's okay. I identify as a feminist."
As we're sure you'll recall, Ladypool was played by Lively in the R-Rated Marvel Studios threequel.
Deleted scenes from this Deadpool & Wolverine sequence have also gone viral on social media, with many now convinced Reynolds was mocking Baldoni. Is it a stretch to suggest that the actor would create a character just to ridicule the guy who butted heads with his wife? Who knows.
Still, this lawsuit may be one to watch.