Co-host Liz Plank Leaves Podcast After Blake Lively Claims, ‘We All Deserve Better’ (Exclusive)

On December 20, Lively accused Baldoni of on-set harassment and a campaign of public retaliation in a legal filing

Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively and Liz Plank.Photo:

Araya Doheny/Variety via Getty; Kristina Bumphrey/WWD via Getty; Roy Rochlin/Getty

Justin Baldoni’s longtime podcast co-host is speaking out after It Ends with Us co-star Blake Lively accused him of on-set harassment and retaliation.

In a statement to fans obtained by PEOPLE, journalist and author Liz Plank shared that she would be leaving the show: “I’m writing to you today to let you know that I’ve asked my rep to inform Wayfarer that I will no longer be co-hosting The Man Enough podcast. Thank you for trusting me with your hearts and your stories, for holding space for me, and for making this show what it is. I will miss you, the listeners, so much. I love what this community has created with every fiber of my being, and it’s because of you.

“As this chapter ends for me, I remain committed to the values ​​we built together,” Plank, 37, continued. “Thank you for being here, for believing in me, and for being by my side these past four years. We all deserve better, and I know that together, we can create it.” I will have more to share soon as I continue to process everything that has happened. In the meantime, I will continue to support all those who call out injustice and hold those who stand in their way accountable.”

Launched in 2021, Man Enough saw Baldoni, Plank, and Wayfarer Studios president Jamey Heath — who Lively also accused of misconduct in her complaint — come to the table weekly to discuss “modern masculinity.”

In the December 20 complaint, Lively, 37, said she had been left “deeply distressed, frightened, traumatized, and anxious” as a result of Baldoni’s alleged actions.

The actress’s filing includes alleged text messages and emails between Baldoni, 40, and his team — including publicist Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan of crisis firm TAG PR — discussing how to manipulate social media and work with the press. to “destroy” Lively.

The complaint was filed not only against Baldoni, but also Heath, as well as Baldoni’s production company, Wayfarer Studios, and co-founder Steve Sarowitz. It was also filed against Jed Wallace, Nathan, and Abel, each of whom were named in the alleged attempt to tarnish Lively’s reputation earlier this year.

In a statement given to the New York Times, Lively said, “I hope that my legal action will help pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm those who speak out about wrongdoing and help protect others who may be targeted.”

Baldoni’s attorney told PEOPLE in a statement after Lively’s complaint was made public that her allegations were “false” and “deliberately intended to cause public injury.”

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.

Gareth Cattermole/WireImage; Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

In her complaint, Lively alleges misconduct that included Baldoni showing her photos and videos, asking her about her personal life, and trying to add intimate scenes to the film that she initially did not consent to.

Lively also claims in the lawsuit that she met with the film’s producers to request a list of safeguards before returning to set.

Some of the safeguards Lively sought in the meeting — which was also attended by her husband Ryan Reynolds — included “no more impromptu kissing” and “no more personal, physical touching or comments by Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath to [Blake Lively] and/or any of her employees, as well as any female cast or crew members, without their express consent,” according to the complaint.

Lively claims in her filing that while Baldoni agreed to the protections, the actor then hired crisis journalists to launch a smear campaign against her that damaged her reputation and business.

TAG PR later issued a statement (via Freedman), saying that their firm “operated like any other crisis management firm when hired by a client facing threats from two extremely powerful people with unlimited resources.”

Rumors of a feud between Lively and Baldoni, who was dropped by his talent agency WME on December 21, swirled in the weeks leading up to the film’s release, with fans pointing out that Lively and the rest of the cast had unfollowed the former Jane the Virgin star on social media.