Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni reached a legal settlement two weeks before the start of the trial - the end of one of the most closely watched Hollywood cases in recent years. Months of mutual lawsuits, dismissed counts and court delays - all ended without a courtroom, by a logic that legal experts read instantly: neither side would have walked out without damage.

The joint statement said all of that with all the necessary notches in diplomatic language. Both sides are „proud" of the finished film „It Ends With Us," are „committed to raising awareness about domestic violence," admit the process „brought challenges," and that Lively's concerns „deserved to be heard." The translation for internal consumption - we're pulling back, both out of decency and out of fatigue.

The context matters. About a month ago, judge Lewis Liman dismissed 10 of the 13 civil counts Lively had filed, including all the harassment claims. Three counts remained for the jury - the counterclaim, complicity in the counterclaim, and breach of contract. That meant Lively was walking into the courtroom from a far weaker position than the one she walked into the media with.

Her original lawsuit, in an 80-page document handed to The New York Times, described Baldoni as a man who had run a sexual harassment campaign in the workplace - discussed her weight with her trainer, pressured her on religious matters, made inappropriate notes about her sexuality. Producer Jamey Heath allegedly showed her explicit videos. The two allegedly entered her dressing room without permission while she was breastfeeding her child.

What remains after all this? A story about how the Hollywood PR machine works when there's no hard evidence - the court is avoided through a settlement, all sides are scrubbed, and we move on to the next scandal. The word „settlement" in American law doesn't mean an admission - but for the public, that's what it is. Baldoni kept his career. Lively kept her reputation. No one lost - but everyone has wounds.