Two-time All-Pro cornerback Stephon Gilmore announces his retirement

Two-time All-Pro cornerback and 2019 NFL AP Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore, who last played in 2024, has announced his retirement.

Gilmore issued an Instagram post Thursday that showed video highlights of his career and closed with the message, “The game ends here, but the journey continues.”

“To my first love, Football — As a young, scrappy kid from Rock Hill, South Carolina, with humble beginnings, the eldest of 6 — you gave me focus, opportunity, strength, and friends to last a lifetime,” Gilmore said in the post. “From my first game with Finley Road Falcons to two Super Bowls, multiple Pro Bowls, and a Defensive Player of the Year Award, you taught me the invaluable lesson of working hard and believing in myself.”

Gilmore also thanked his wife and kids “for making it possible for me to chase my dreams” and his parents “for raising me to be the man I am today.”

The 35-year-old Gilmore was the defensive player of the year and had a league-leading six interceptions in 2019 with the New England Patriots. He also earned All-Pro honors in 2018 during a Super Bowl championship season with the Patriots.

He had 32 interceptions and was selected to five Pro Bowls during a 13-year career that included stints with the Buffalo Bills (2012-16), Patriots (2017-20), Carolina Panthers (2021), Indianapolis Colts (2022), Dallas Cowboys (2023) and Minnesota Vikings (2024). The Bills selected Gilmore out of South Carolina with the 10th overall pick in the 2012 draft.

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FILE - Carolina Panthers' Stephon Gilmore runs after an interception against the New England Patriots during the first half of an NFL football game Nov. 7, 2021, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman, File)

FILE - Indianapolis Colts cornerback Stephon Gilmore (5) talks with cornerback Brandon Facyson (31) before an NFL football game, in Indianapolis, Nov. 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)

FILE - Indianapolis Colts cornerback Stephon Gilmore (5) breaks up a pass intended for Minnesota Vikings wide receiver K.J. Osborn (17) during the first half of an NFL football game, Dec. 17, 2022, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)

FILE - Dallas Cowboys cornerback Stephon Gilmore (21) celebrates with his teammates after intercepting a pass during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Oct. 16, 2023, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)

FILE - Minnesota Vikings cornerback Stephon Gilmore warms up before an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sept. 15, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — Blake Lively’s sexual harassment claims against actor Justin Baldoni over their roles in the movie “It Ends With Us” were dismissed Thursday by a federal judge who left intact three claims, including retaliation, that will let a jury hear many of the allegations anyway.

The written ruling by Judge Lewis J. Liman in Manhattan came after Lively sued Baldoni in December 2024. A trial is scheduled for May 18.

Baldoni and production company Wayfarer Studios had countersued Lively and her husband, “Deadpool” actor Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of defamation and extortion. The judge dismissed Baldoni’s claims last June.

In his ruling, Liman determined that Lively was an independent contractor rather than an employee. On that basis, he said she was not entitled to bring sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. That law prohibits employment discrimination on various grounds, including gender.

As to retaliation, the judge said some evidence might enable a jury to conclude that Baldoni's production company planned not only to damage Lively's reputation but to destroy her career amid fear she'd file a discrimination claim. Lively alleges a smear campaign has been “devastating for her reputation and career,” the judge noted.

In an analysis of the sexual harassment claims, the judge said Lively's claims had to be viewed in the context of the movie they were working on.

“Lively claims that during filming, Baldoni leaned in and gestured as if he was intending to kiss her, and that he kissed her forehead, rubbed his face and mouth against her neck, put his thumb to her mouth and flicked her lower lip, caressed her, and leaned into her neck, saying ‘it smells good,’” the judge wrote.

He said there was no question that the conduct would support a hostile work environment claim if it happened on a factory floor or in an executive suite.

However, the judge noted, Baldoni was “acting in the scene” and his "conduct was not so far beyond what might reasonably be expected to take place between two characters during a slow dancing scene such that an inference of hostile treatment on the basis of sex would arise. At least in isolation, the conduct was directed to Lively’s character rather than to Lively herself.”

Liman added: “Creative artists, no less than comedy room writers, must have some amount of space to experiment within the bounds of an agreed script without fear of being held liable for sexual harassment.”

Despite those findings, the judge said some sexual harassment claims may be put to a jury to support two retaliation claims that survived the ruling, including one against It Ends With Us Movie LLC and Wayfarer Studios, and a third claim that was left intact alleging breach of a contract rider agreement against It Ends With Us Movie LLC.

The judge noted that Baldoni once said “pretty hot” after asking Lively to remove her jacket, exposing a lace bra underneath, and that when he was warned that it was inappropriate and distracting to make such comment, he allegedly rolled his eyes and responded: “Sorry, I missed the sexual harassment training.”

Liman also cited a scene in which Baldoni pushed for Lively to perform a birth scene naked and then the scene was filmed over several hours without the set being closed to nonessential personnel.

In a statement, Lively attorney Sigrid McCawley wrote that Lively “looks forward to testifying at trial and continuing to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation so that it become easier to detect and fight.”

She added: “This case has always been and will remain focused on the devasting retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy Blake Lively’s reputation because she stood up for safety on the set and that is the case that is going to trial.”

A lawyer for Baldoni and his production company did not immediately comment.

“It Ends With Us,” an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling 2016 novel that begins as a romance but takes a dark turn into domestic violence, was released in August 2024, exceeding box office expectations with a $50 million debut. But the movie’s release was shrouded by speculation over discord between Lively and Baldoni.

Lively appeared in the 2005 film “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” and the TV series “Gossip Girl” from 2007 to 2012 before starring in films including “The Town” and “The Shallows.”

Baldoni starred in the TV comedy “Jane the Virgin,” directed the 2019 film “Five Feet Apart” and wrote “Man Enough,” a book challenging traditional notions of masculinity.

This combination of images shows Blake Lively at the London screening of the film "It 'Ends With Us" on Aug. 8, 2024, left, and Justin Baldoni at the world premiere of the film in New York on Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo)