Blake Lively has withdrawn a subpoena of celebrity blogger Perez Hilton in her lawsuit against actor-director Justin Baldoni, according to court documents obtained by Page Six.
The filing, submitted Friday, followed Hilton's retention of the ACLU of Nevada after he had been representing himself in the matter. Hilton told Page Six that he believed the subpoena would have remained in place had the civil liberties organization not intervened, saying, "I am certain with every fiber of my being that if the ACLU of Nevada had not agreed to represent me and had they not called her lawyers yesterday to inform them of that, Blake would absolutely still be pursuing the subpoena! They withdrew today — after yesterday's call." Representatives for Lively did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Lively subpoenaed Hilton in July as part of her lawsuit against Baldoni, who she has accused of sexual harassment and retaliation. In her filings, Lively alleged that Hilton, using his "sizable digital platform," colluded with Baldoni and members of the production to mount a smear campaign against her.
Hilton, who founded his eponymous celebrity website in 2004, has denied any coordinated effort. He told Page Six he was "not being sued" and said he "did nothing wrong," characterizing the subpoena as "burdensome," "too broad" and threatening to his "journalistic sources and work product" as well as his "privileged and protected information." He added, "Nobody told me to write anything negative about her. Nobody paid me to write anything negative about her. Nobody gave me talking points, etc., etc., etc."
Lively's subpoena prompted Hilton to file a motion to quash. Lively responded with a cross-motion to compel, arguing that Hilton does not "hold himself out as operating as an independent journalist, nor does he purport to follow any of the tenets of independent journalism." Hilton has countered that digital reporters are entitled to the same protections as traditional journalists and said he would argue that point in court.
Hilton framed the dispute as disproportionate in a public statement, likening the situation to "a real-life David vs. Goliath," with him and Justin Baldoni as David and Lively and her husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, as Goliath. Baldoni, who has denied Lively's allegations, previously countersued Lively and Reynolds for defamation and extortion; that countersuit was dismissed on procedural grounds, which Hilton described as "technicalities."
The central lawsuit between Lively and Baldoni remains pending. Court schedules indicate that both Lively and Baldoni are expected to testify when the case is tried in March 2026. The dispute has generated multiple pretrial motions concerning discovery and the boundaries between reporting, commentary and potential coordination with parties in litigation.
Legal experts and media-rights advocates have in recent years increasingly debated how First Amendment protections apply to digital-native journalists and commentary sites. The involvement of the ACLU of Nevada in Hilton's defense signals the civil liberties group's interest in those questions as they arise in high-profile cases.
With the subpoena withdrawn, the immediate dispute over Hilton's records and testimony has been paused, but the broader litigation and its remaining discovery disputes are likely to continue as the parties prepare for the March 2026 trial.
(Reporting based on court documents obtained by Page Six and public statements by the parties.)