Kaylah Walton
Scott Swift, the father of pop superstar Taylor Swift, has been named as the person who alerted Justin Baldoni‘s legal representatives about actress Blake Lively‘s alleged threat to leak private messages unless Taylor provided her public backing in an ongoing legal dispute.
This information came to light in a report from the Daily Mail, which claimed that Scott willingly shared this knowledge with Baldoni‘s team. This action was reportedly taken to protect his daughter from being further drawn into the legal conflict between Baldoni and Lively, related to their collaboration in the film It Ends With Us.
An unnamed insider shared with the Daily Mail, “Scott Swift was keen on keeping his daughter out of deeper complications, and he willingly shared this information in exchange for [Baldoni’s team] retracting their subpoena for Taylor.”
This insider’s statement corresponds with previous legal documents filed by Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, who revealed that Blake Lively‘s lawyer, Michael Gottlieb, allegedly made a demand to Taylor Swift‘s legal representatives, Venable.
Gottlieb was said to have insisted that Swift publicly support Lively in order to prevent the release of private text messages reportedly held by Lively. The legal documents also suggested that Lively pushed Swift to erase their text conversations.
Gottlieb responded to these claims by categorically denying them in a statement to Page Six, labeling the accusations as “cowardly” and “entirely disconnected from reality.”
Subpoena retracted following alleged insider involvement
Although Freedman did not initially identify his source, he mentioned in a sworn declaration that he spoke for an hour with someone “very closely linked” to Taylor Swift.
The Daily Mail reported that Scott Swift was that individual, and the information he provided was crucial in leading Baldoni’s legal team to withdraw the subpoena against the singer.
A source indicated to the Daily Mail that it appeared Lively‘s legal representatives were attempting to coerce Taylor into siding with them by threatening to expose sensitive personal details.
“Lively’s team seemed to be trying to pressure Taylor by threatening to make private information about her public, aiming to force her to support a narrative she didn’t want to be part of,” said the insider.
The decision to retract the subpoena followed a judge ruling that the allegations regarding the threats were inadmissible in court, labeling them as “inappropriate” and “irrelevant” to the case.
Even with that decision, the documents submitted by Freedman had already stirred controversy, as he accused Lively of using her star power—with Swift and Ryan Reynolds‘s backing—to influence creative decisions on It Ends With Us and sway Baldoni‘s role in the film.
Freedman described the situation as one where Baldoni was “not just dealing with Lively; he was also confronting Lively‘s ‘dragons,’ two of the most powerful and affluent celebrities globally, who were unafraid to complicate matters for him.”
Swift’s team has rejected all claims of involvement in the film’s production or creative choices. Her representative previously told Page Six, “Taylor Swift never visited the set of this movie, she had no role in casting or creative decisions, she wasn’t involved in scoring the film, she didn’t see any edits or provide any input on the film, and only watched It Ends With Us weeks after its release while touring the globe in 2023 and 2024 during the biggest tour in history.”
In a show of support, Swift‘s partner Travis Kelce unfollowed Ryan Reynolds—Blake Lively‘s husband—on Instagram amidst this turmoil. Representatives for all parties involved have opted not to comment further.
While Taylor Swift has been cleared of any formal involvement, her father’s decision to speak out underscores the growing rift between former friends and the high stakes in this unfolding Hollywood dispute.
