A journalist is recounting her “traumatizing” experience interviewing Blake Lively in 2016 alongside her “Café Society” co-star Parker Posey.
The reporter, who was dragged into the “Gossip Girl” alum’s bitter court battle with actor Justin Baldoni, lamented not being able to testify following their recent settlement.
Blake Lively is still pursuing damages for what she claims is a retaliation effort on Baldoni’s part due to his $400 million countersuit that was dismissed by a judge.
Journalist Kjersti Flaa has opened up about the negative toll her awkward interview with Blake Lively had on her.
In a now-viral 2016 clip, which also featured her “Café Society” co-star Parker Posey, the Norwegian reporter congratulated a then-pregnant Lively on her “little bump,” but the actress wasn’t having it and hit back at her, saying, “Congrats on your little bump.”
It came as a surprise to Flaa as she wasn’t pregnant at the time, later revealing that she couldn’t conceive. After the awkward moment, tensions filled the air as Lively seemingly shut her out and gave her attitude all through till the end.
“It was a really traumatizing experience,” Flaa said, per Page Six, noting that it made her feel very “uncomfortable.”
Flaa said she attempted to change the topic by asking Lively and Posey about their wardrobe in the movie, but the actress shot back, saying, “Everyone wants to talk about the clothes, but I wonder if they would ask the men about the clothes.”
The Journalist Felt Helpless After The Actress Proceeded To Ignore Her During The Interview
During the already awkward interview, Lively shifted focus to her co-star as both of them went ahead to have a full-on conversation, totally ignoring Flaa, their interviewer.
“I was just sitting there like, ‘Oh.’… I didn’t really understand all that. And then when I asked the next question about the costumes, [they] turned to each other and just ignored me. That’s when I started, you know, feeling like, ‘Oh my God. They’re actually doing this,’” the reporter said.
Flaa went further to explain that she was shocked to experience such treatment from the “Another Simple Favor” actress, but added that she couldn’t do anything because an adverse reaction would have amounted to her just being on the line.
“As a journalist, you always have to take the high road, you know?” she said. “So when I was sitting there, I couldn’t react to what they were doing to me in a sense of like leaving or talking back to them or doing anything like that, because I knew if I did, then I would never get opportunities like that again.”
Kjersti Flaa Recalled Being Left ‘Frustrated And Angry’ With Blake Lively’s Behavior
As Flaa puts it, her job and career were at the back of her mind because she knew she could get blacklisted from further interviews and potential employers if the situation had spiraled out of control.
“Not that I necessarily wanted to interview Blake again, but, you know, she has a publicist, and then they talk, and then they blacklist you. That’s how it works, right?” she claimed.
The reporter continued, “So I just sat there, and then I started getting more and more frustrated and angry and upset and all these emotions because I was like, I couldn’t believe they were actually doing it. I was just in shock.”
At the height of Lively’s legal standoff with Baldoni, Flaa reshared the clip and was dragged into the case as Lively claimed she did it as part of a “smear campaign” her former co-star had paid for to tarnish her image.
Kjersti Flaa Rejected Claims She Helped Justin Baldoni Run A ‘Smear Campaign’ Against The Actress
After they both reached a settlement, the journalist lamented the fact that she wouldn’t be testifying again and accused Lively of being a “bully.”
“I wasn’t surprised by [Lively objecting to me testifying], it makes a lot of sense that they wouldn’t want me [to testify],” Flaa told the Daily Mail.
She continued, “They accused [Justin’s production studio’s team] of amplifying the video and using it to smear her, and I was planning to tell the truth about what actually happened. I had nothing to do with the smear campaign.”
Weeks ahead of their scheduled May 18th trial commencement, both stars reached a settlement, but that wasn’t until judge Lewis Liman handed Lively a massive blow by dismissing 10 out of the 13 claims she made against him, including sexual harassment.
The Journalist Branded Blake Lively’s Case Against Her Co-Star ‘Weak’
Reports suggest Lively walked out of her settlement with Baldoni without receiving any financial payout.
This was seemingly confirmed by her decision to pursue damages for his “retaliatory” $400 million defamation countersuit.
Speaking about the settlement, Flaa suggested it was the actress admitting defeat because she knew her case was not strong enough to hold up in court if they ended up going to trial.
“She knew she had a weak case. I think she was advised by everyone to let it go,” the reporter suggested. “It would have been so humiliating for her to lose, and you never want to look like a liar in front of a jury.”