The boys are fighting! This latest Justin Baldoni It Ends With Us legal battle update is giving middle school drama, I fear. Justin and his lawyer, Bryan Freedman, believe that the Nicepool character in Deadpool & Wolverine is mocking Justin, which is why Bryan just wrote a litigation hold letter to Marvel and Disney. And who’s a writer on Deadpool & Wolverine? Yup, Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively’s husband. This latest legal development comes after Blake accused her It Ends With Us costar and director, Justin, of sexual harassment and retaliation, and he denied the claims and sued The New York Times for libel over their article about Blake’s complaint.

Here’s a breakdown of the Justin’s legal letter against Ryan Reynolds and the Justin and Nicepool comparisons.

Justin Baldoni & Nicepool Comparisons: Legal Letter Against Ryan Reynolds

Justin Baldoni’s Legal Letter About Ryan Reynolds, Explained

Justin’s lawyer sent a legal letter to Marvel president Kevin Feige and Disney CEO Bob Iger, and it regards the actor and director’s “anticipated claims” against Ryan and others. In the letter, Bryan requests that Marvel and Disney retain “any and all documents relating to the development of the ‘Nicepool’ character” and “communications relating to the development, writing, and filming of storylines and scenes featuring ‘Nicepool.’”

It also mentions “all documents relating to or reflecting a deliberate attempt to mock, harass, ridicule, intimidate, or bully Baldoni through the character of ‘Nicepool.’” Basically, Justin’s lawyer is instructing Marvel and Disney to hold onto any evidence that could suggest Ryan lightly ~bullied~ Justin via the Nicepool character. A serious, serious matter indeed.

Is Nicepool Based On Justin Baldoni?

That’s clearly what Justin and his team think! Ryan’s never confirmed this theory himself, but I mean… It makes sense.

In Deadpool & Wolverine, the Nicepool character is a silly, alternate-universe version of Deadpool. At one point, Nicepool says: “Where in God’s name is the intimacy coordinator?!” The character also praises Ladypool for “snapping back” into shape after having a baby. “She just had a baby, too — you can’t even tell,” Nicepool says. When Deadpool responds, “I don’t think you’re supposed to stay that,” Nicepool declares, “That’s okay. I identify as a feminist.” (Whether he’s guilty or not guilty of Blake’s allegations, Justin is definitely a self-congratulating feminist.)

In her complaint, Blake alleged that Justin “routinely degraded” her by “finding back channel ways of criticizing her body and weight.” According to the actress, he called her trainer without her knowledge and implied that he “wanted her to lose weight in two weeks.” This would’ve been a few months after Blake welcomed her fourth child with Ryan.

And there’s more. TikToker americastia shared what appears to be a deleted scene on TikTok, and there’s a seemingly obvious reference to Justin. Nicepool says in the clip: “I’d be fighting alongside you, but my calling is to one day start a podcast that monetizes the women’s movement.” Justin, of course, hosts the Man Enough podcast, which “explores what it means to be a man today and how rigid gender roles have affected all people.” It’s mostly him patting himself on the back for being a “good” man and yapping with celebrities about why they’re ~enough~.

Unfortunately, I’m sure we’ll get another Justin/Blake/Ryan legal battle update within a few business days.