A "It Ends With Us" legal storm in Hollywood hints at deeper health issues
Key Takeaways
Industry Insights
“Much like a toxic work environment, which typically has no short-term end in sight, a lawsuit also brings with it chronic stress, prolonged uncertainty, [and] emotional distress, now layered with financial strain.” - J Cangialosi, LCPC
Late last month, Blake Lively filed a lawsuit against her “It Ends With Us” costar Justin Baldoni due to repeated sexual harassment.[] Baldoni later filed his own lawsuit, suing The New York Times for $250 million after the publication published a story about the allegations titled “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine.”[]
Such lawsuits—particularly those related to harassment and discrimination—are known to wear on people’s mental and physical health.
How these kind of lawsuits shape health
According to James DeSimone, an employment and civil rights attorney at V. James DeSimone Law, the stress of being subjected to prolonged harassment and filing a lawsuit can spill over into people’s personal lives and impact their lives at home, as well as their significant others and children.
People’s identities and self-worth are often deeply tied to their careers, and so when someone is treated unfairly by a coworker, they may develop feelings of betrayal, anger, grief, and sadness, DeSimone says. “Their feelings of outrage and injustice are sometimes mixed with fear of losing their job or of not being able to find another. They may feel guilt about what this loss of income might mean for their family, or shame at somehow having ‘failed,’” he adds.
Depending on the circumstances, some people may develop PTSD-like symptoms and experience recurrent, haunting memories of being in a hostile work environment.[] “We often ensure these people get counseling or therapy to help them start healing mentally and physically as the legal process moves ahead,” DeSimone says.
🥺🥺🥺🥺
— Colonel Kurtz -PopCulture/ Politics/ MarilynManson (@colonelkurtz99) January 7, 2025
“MY BODY IS DONE—TOO MUCH STRESS.”
That time Justin Baldoni got so stressed out by Blake Lively’s drama and antics that he got really sick and had to spend days in the hospital and get a picc line for six weeks.
But sure, it was Lively who was harassed right? 😒 pic.twitter.com/qzPB3i0oa1
The experience in court
Meanwhile, lawsuits—and the time it takes for them to reach trial—can be lengthy and distressing. “Much like a toxic work environment, which typically has no short-term end in sight, a lawsuit also brings with it chronic stress, prolonged uncertainty, [and] emotional distress, now layered with financial strain,” says J Cangialosi, LCPC, a therapist and clinical development coordinator at Relief Mental Health. In some cases, the uncertainty can trigger emotional eating or substance misuse, according to Silvia Russen, a business psychologist and doctoral researcher at City, University of London.
People also have to relive difficult experiences under hostile questioning in court. “Recounting distressing incidents in depositions or court hearings can perpetuate a state of heightened stress,” Russen says.
In addition, the opponent may try to persuade the jurors that the other person misunderstood, exaggerated, overreacted, or behaved incompetently. “This in itself can be traumatizing to those already injured by sustained bullying, threats, and other abusive or demeaning behaviors,” DeSimone says.