Booktok mainstay and New York Times bestseller, ‘It Ends With Us’ finally made it to the silver screen in 2024. It stars Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, and Brandon Sklenar and premiered on Aug. 9, 2024.
Promoting a movie should be a cause for celebration. However, such a happy occasion has also attracted negative attention, particularly from its lead actor, Blake Lively. It seems she’s involved in an alleged feud with her co-star and director, Justin Baldoni. Plus, she’s been scrutinized by netizens because of her comments and lack of tact.
The question is, what’s happening with Blake Lively?
Feud with Justin Baldoni
Speculation about a feud with actor-director Justin Baldoni sparked when the cast of It Ends With Us promoted the film separately from him. It’s clear that Lively was promoting alongside Sklenar while Baldoni was getting interviewed alone. Eagle-eyed fans also noticed that Lively doesn’t follow Baldoni on Instagram but follows her other castmates and the author, Colleen Hoover. Meanwhile, Baldoni follows Lively and his other castmates in the movie.
Despite Baldoni’s absence from the interviews with co-stars, the director had more positive words to say about his co-star. He even praised her for her involvement in creating the film for what it is. Plus, he insinuated that he let her call the shots on most of the film’s direction. Additionally, in contrast to how Lively approached her interviews, Baldoni has been vocal about themes in this book, particularly domestic violence. Despite the lack of discussion about domestic violence in interviews, Lively posted some resources on social media last Aug. 14.
What’s more, it seems that Lively has taken the editing and cinematography into her own hands despite only getting producer credit. She enlisted the help of Shane Reid, the cinematographer of her husband’s movie, Deadpool vs Wolverine, to create a cut of the film. The Hollywood Reporter stated that an insider said multiple cuts of a film is not an uncommon practice.
What Was She Really Promoting?
On top of the premiere, Blake Lively was also promoting her new hair care line, Blake Brown. Many netizens called her insensitive and tone-deaf for prioritizing the promotion of her hair care line rather than raising awareness of domestic violence. Plus, the actor was also seen taking a video of her promoting her alcoholic drink company, Betty Booze, during the premiere.
Added to that, Lively, in an interview with Jake’s Takes, seems to lack tack when the interviewer, Jake Hamilton, asked the actor if fans were to approach her about the topics that were touched on in the film. Many netizens have chimed in, saying that her answer seemed like she wasn’t empathetic because she was “offering” to give her phone number or address if they wanted to talk to her. However, she believes they handled the movie with care regarding the themes. Plus, she hopes that this movie can be helpful to someone’s healing journey or a cautionary tale.
A 2018 Interview Resurfaces
In the midst of the bad press and criticisms that Lively has been facing upon the premiere of the movie, Kjersti Flaa, a celebrity reporter and YouTuber, uploaded a video of her interviewing Blake Lively and Parker Posey. The two actors were doing press for Cafe Society in 2016.
Titled, “This Blake Lively interview that made me want to quit my job,” Flaa started by congratulating Blake Lively on her pregnancy. However, Lively did not receive this well. She responded sarcastically congratulating Flaa on her bump as well. However, Flaa didn’t show any bumps and wasn’t pregnant.
Many netizens have noted that Blake Lively had already announced her pregnancy of her second child in 2016.
In the video, both Lively and Posey barely made eye contact with Flaa, which many netizens who watched the video saw as rude. At the end, it appears that Posey also rolls her eyes.
In the same interview, Flaa asked the women about their clothes for the film. This question seemed relevant, considering it was a period piece (set in the 1930s). The two actors seemed to take offense at the questions, commenting that the men should be asked the same question. Flaa promised then that she would.
After publishing this interview on YouTube, Flaa went on the record with DailyMail.com, stating that she felt ‘hurt’ upon hearing Lively’s sarcastic remark. Flaa says she was struggling with infertility. Besides that, Flaa has also said it took her time to move on from this and build confidence.
In Her Defense
Blake Lively remains mum on the negative press surrounding her. However, co-star Brandon Sklenar published an Instagram post defending the female filmmakers and author. Sklenar’s statement indicated that the women understood the book’s themes and ensured that it was intended to inspire, validate, and give hope. Plus, he reminded internet users to be more mindful of their words and reflect on whether their opinions would be productive to any conversation regarding the film.
Sklenar wasn’t the only voice defending Lively during this press tour. Tony Vinciquerra, chair-CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, believes that Blake Lively and the other women involved in this production handled the movie themes with care. He also commended Lively for her handling of the topics and stated that he would like to work with the actor in the future.
The Future of the Franchise
The franchise’s future installments could be affected because of the drama. Baldoni suggested that if the sequel were to happen, Lively should take over the helm as director, too. Despite the controversies and backlash surrounding its star, the film earned almost 7x its supposed budget ($25 million) and continues earning millions daily.
