Harvey Weinstein Inserts Himself Into Blake Lively Drama From Behind Bars

In a development that's already raising eyebrows across Hollywood, Harvey Weinstein has entered the conversation around Justin Baldoni’s high-profile legal battle with Blake Lively.

From behind bars, Harvey Weinstein is offering his support to the embattled actor-director while likening Baldoni’s situation to his own.

The convicted rapist, currently serving over a decade in prison for multiple sex crimes, told TMZ on Wednesday that he believes Baldoni has been unfairly targeted by The New York Times.

The outlet’s December 2024 exposé, “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine,” included partial messages from Baldoni’s PR team that appeared to suggest they could “bury anyone," including Lively, in what was portrayed as a calculated smear campaign.

Baldoni and his team fired back with a $250 million libel lawsuit against the Times, accusing the publication of misrepresenting private messages, which they allege were “cherry-picked” and manipulated to fit a false narrative.

“Watching Justin Baldoni take legal action against the New York Times and its reporters, accusing them of manipulating communications and ignoring evidence that countered Ms. Lively’s claims, hit me hard,” Weinstein said. “It brought back everything I experienced when the Times reported on me in 2017. They did the same thing: cherry-picked what fit their story and ignored critical context and facts that could have challenged the narrative.”

Weinstein’s reference points directly to the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation that exposed decades of sexual abuse allegations against him, reporting that helped ignite the #MeToo movement.

In response to Weinstein’s latest statements, The New York Times defended the integrity of its reporting.

“Our comprehensive investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment and abuse against Mr. Weinstein was rigorously reported over many months and based on on-the-record interviews, legal settlements paid to accusers and other documents,” spokesperson Danielle Rhoades said.

“None of the facts in our coverage are in dispute. Mr. Weinstein acknowledged his misconduct in a statement that was published in full in The Times," Rhoades added. "He’s since been criminally convicted of rape and sexual assault.”

Weinstein’s 2020 New York conviction was overturned in 2024, but a retrial is set for April 15.

He is also appealing a separate 16-year sentence from his 2023 California conviction for forcible rape and other charges.

“I should have stood up and fought back then. I should have had the courage to speak out against the way the truth was twisted. That failure still haunts me,” Weinstein said on Wednesday.

He also added that he will be “watching Baldoni and Lively’s case closely,” suggesting that the outcome “matters to anyone who’s ever been on the receiving end of a media takedown.”

Weinstein’s public endorsement of Baldoni comes as a surprise to many, considering his past connection to both Lively and her inner circle. The two were once photographed together at public events, and in 2014, Page Six reported that Weinstein shared the same publicist as Lively, Leslie Sloane.

Sources at the time claimed Weinstein and MSG executive Jim Dolan financially backed Sloane’s transition into founding her own publicity firm, Vision PR. Weinstein was even quoted saying, “Leslie’s next move is going to rock the industry.”

But a rep for Sloane now disputes any suggestion of a working relationship with the disgraced producer. “Leslie Sloane never represented Harvey Weinstein,” the spokesperson told Page Six. “In 2014, after Sloane left BWR, she and Weinstein engaged in preliminary discussions concerning a potential working relationship with their companies but that never came to fruition.”

The rep also dismissed ongoing online speculation, stating, “Contrary to false rumors being spread online, Sloane has never worked to silence victims of sexual abuse in any way and indeed has actively supported victims of sexual abuse.”

Sloane, along with clients Lively and Ryan Reynolds, is currently named as a co-defendant in Baldoni’s $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit, which stems from accusations that the "Gossip Girl" actress made against Baldoni. The publicist has filed a motion to be dismissed from the suit, calling it a retaliatory attempt “to discredit and blame his victims and punish anyone who speaks out against him.”

Lively has remained firm in her stance, asserting that her statements about Baldoni’s conduct both on and off set are truthful, including claims that he frequently made women feel uncomfortable and discussed inappropriate topics of a sexual nature in front of colleagues.

Baldoni has denied all wrongdoing. The case is expected to go to trial in March 2026.