How Chris Evans Supported Ryan Reynolds During ‘PR Struggle’ Amid Blake Lively’s Legal Battle (Exclusive)

Ryan Reynolds and Chris Evans have been close pals for many years and they’re spending more time together now with wives Blake Lively and Alba Baptista.

“Chris and Ryan bonded tightly after going up for a lot of the same parts earlier in their careers and facing the same pressures as highly paid Marvel superheroes during the last 10 years. It’s a crazy lifestyle and they’ve both been through it,” a source exclusively tells Star.

“Beyond that, Chris definitely looks up to Ryan and is sympathetic to the PR struggle he and Blake have been going through since December,” the source adds, referring to Lively’s highly publicized court war with former It Ends With Us costar Justin Baldoni. “Some people have distanced themselves from Ryan and Blake, but Chris and Alba have not.”

The source tells Star that Reynolds, 48, and Lively, 37, are grateful for the support they have received from Evans, 44, and Baptista, 28, and “will remember that and reward that if they have the chance.”

“It’s not a trade-off for [Chris and Alba]. They both really believe in Ryan and what he’s trying to accomplish in the long term, and they’re sticking with him every step of the way!”

As Star previously reported, Lively filed her complaint on Dec. 20, 2024, accusing Baldoni, 41, of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment — claims he vehemently denied.

Baldoni sued The New York Times for $250 million on Dec. 31, 2024, alleging that the outlet used “‘cherry-picked’ and altered communications stripped of necessary context and deliberately spliced to mislead” when they reported on the filing, according to the docs.

Baldoni, who starred in and directed the film, and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, later filed a $400 million countersuit against the Gossip Girl alum, Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane, seeking $400 million in damages in January 2025.

In his docs, Baldoni accused Lively of defamation and extortion, claiming she used her influence to take creative control of the movie and orchestrated a smear campaign against him.

The case took a turn on June 9 when Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed the defamation and extortion countersuit filed by Baldoni and also threw out the $250 million claim against The New York Times.

After Baldoni’s lawsuit was dismissed, his lawyer Bryan Freedman told ABC News at the time, “Instead of revising the existing claims, our clients will be pursuing additional legal options that are available to us.” Freedman continued, “The Court’s decision on the motion to dismiss has no effect whatsoever on the truth that there was no harassment nor any smear campaign, and it does not in any way affect our vigorous defense against Ms. Lively’s claims.”

More recently, Lively’s deposition in her legal battle with Baldoni was postponed to the end of July after Judge Liman granted her request for a protective order in her ongoing legal battle.

A trial is set for March 2026.