Jennifer Abel tried to hide behind denials. In her official response to Blake Lively’s lawsuit, the celebrity publicist claimed she knew nothing about a retaliatory smear campaign. She denied plotting against Lively. Denied knowing about any “sexual predator” rumors. Denied involvement in any attempt to silence a woman speaking out about mistreatment on set.

But now we know the truth—because we’ve seen the receipts.

Filed in open court, Blake Lively’s Amended Complaint exposes a damning sequence of text messages between Abel and crisis PR consultant Melissa Nathan. The goal? “Social manipulation,” “astroturfing,” and the digital annihilation of Lively’s reputation.

And the language Abel used is not just incriminating. It’s chilling.

“We can’t write it down to him. We can’t write we will destroy her.”
— Melissa Nathan to Jennifer Abel, Feb. 8, 2024

“He wants to feel like [Ms. Lively] can be buried.”
— Abel relaying Baldoni’s intent

This wasn’t idle gossip. This was a coordinated digital warfare campaign, carefully timed to coincide with the release of It Ends With Us. The mission? To neutralize Lively’s concerns and silence her through public shaming and misdirection. Abel helped plot a narrative designed to smear Lively as unstable, unreliable, and selfish—while shielding Baldoni from scrutiny.

They targeted Reddit, TikTok, and Instagram. They seeded fake grassroots praise for Baldoni and mockery of Lively. They hired a Texas-based digital contractor to create the illusion of widespread support—and they tracked it in real time.

By August 10, the day after the film’s release, Abel was celebrating what she and her co-conspirators saw as success:

“Started to see a shift on social, due largely to Jed and his team’s efforts to shift the narrative.”

And when the pile-on began, Abel felt no remorse. She just laughed:

“The majority of socials are so pro Justin and I don’t even agree with half of them lol.”

This is the same Jennifer Abel who filed a sworn denial saying she didn’t know about any of it.

Lying to the public is one thing. Lying to the court is another.

Her conduct is not just unethical—it’s sanctionable. Under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, litigants are required to ensure that their claims and defenses are supported by evidence. Abel’s aren’t. She didn’t just withhold facts. She actively denied events in which she was a primary participant.

In doing so, she not only exposed herself to potential perjury or sanctions—she weakened her co-defendants’ credibility. Because if Abel lied about this, what else is Wayfarer hiding?

And let’s not forget: none of this refutes Blake Lively’s original concern—that she was being pushed out of a creative process and retaliated against when she objected. Abel’s job was supposed to be PR, not character assassination. But what she helped run was a sophisticated misogyny machine that punished a woman for saying “no.”

Abel may not have appeared on camera. But she helped write the script. And now, every line of it is coming back to haunt her.

Footnotes:

1. Blake Lively v. Wayfarer Studios et al., Amended Complaint, Case No. 1:24-cv-10049-LJL, Dkt. 84, ¶¶ 29–41
2. Jennifer Abel’s Amended Answer, filed April 2025
3. Exhibit A, Timeline of Events (Wayfarer marketing memo, Jan. 13, 2023)