Blake Lively‘s brother-in-law Bart Johnson is apologizing after he appeared to publicly criticize Justin Baldoni.
Johnson, the High School Musical actor who is married to Lively’s sister Robyn Lively, shared a post on X on Tuesday, Jan. 28 in which he expressed regret over saying “unkind” things on social media.
He previously appeared to reference Baldoni, who is engaged in a high-stakes legal battle with his It Ends With Us costar Lively, on X earlier in the week, writing, “He’s a fraud.” That post, captured by USA Today, has since been deleted
“Anytime I’ve said anything unkind about someone I’ve regretted it. Fortunately that’s almost never and definitely not when I’m at my best,” Johnson, 54, wrote in his Jan. 28 post. “Regardless if it’s true or not, if it’s my opinion, even if I’m trying to speak truth or stand up for someone, it’s never good. Even in times where it might ‘feel’ justified and doing the right thing, it makes no difference. There’s a better way. It’s below the standard I have for myself and I regret it.”
Alamy
Per USA Today, Johnson wrote in the since-deleted X post, “He puts on the ‘costume’ of a hero, man bun and all. Used all of the trendy catchphrases & buzz words for his podcasts. None of it’s genuine. It’s all theater. And everyone fell for it. For years.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In his Jan. 28 post on X, Johnson added, “I do sincerely apologize to anyone I’ve hurt or let down by saying something that sounds mean. I’ll do better. If you follow me you know you’ll be hard pressed to find more than 1 time I’ve criticized anyone on social. It’s not my jam. . . We all have flaws and I’m definitely a work in progress and doing my best to grow and be better.”
Lively filed a lawsuit in December claiming that Baldoni sexually harassed her and launched a retaliatory public smear campaign against her. Baldoni then filed his own $400 million lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and their publicist, while denying all claims.
Lively’s family members have also spoken out in support of her amid the legal battle, as well as members of the It Ends With Us cast. After Lively’s legal complaint made news in December, her sister Robyn, 52, wrote, “FINALLY justice for my sister,” in an Instagram Stories post.
Lively and Baldoni have a pre-trial conference scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 12 in New York City.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source people.com ’
