The highly anticipated film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestseller It Ends With Us made headlines throughout 2024, but not for the reasons fans hoped. Starring Blake Lively as Lily Bloom and Justin Baldoni as Ryle Kincaid, the movie promised to tackle heavy themes of domestic violence and self-empowerment. Instead, it has become embroiled in lawsuits and allegations, with the on-screen tension between the stars spilling into real life.
As details emerge, both Lively and Baldoni are accusing each other of misconduct, with lawsuits flying and shocking claims surfacing about their tumultuous working relationship.
Even before its release, It Ends With Us faced backlash for its portrayal of sensitive issues. Critics argued that the film romanticized abuse, failing to adequately capture the harrowing realities of domestic violence. Behind the scenes, tensions were brewing between its lead actors.
Filming began shortly after Lively welcomed her fourth child. Tensions arose when Baldoni, who also served as the film’s director, allegedly made comments about Lively’s post-pregnancy appearance. While Baldoni’s team claimed he was concerned about his chronic back pain and how to handle physically demanding scenes, Lively saw the comments as “fat-shaming.”
The friction didn’t end there. In her lawsuit, Lively alleged that Baldoni’s behavior on set was inappropriate and hostile. She accused him of showing explicit images and videos, recounting graphic stories of past relationships, and pushing for unnecessary sex scenes to be added to the film.
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According to Lively, this behavior created a toxic environment that went far beyond creative disagreements.
One of the more damning pieces of evidence in Lively’s complaint included text messages reportedly between Baldoni and his PR team, which appeared to outline plans for a smear campaign against her. The lawsuit described an atmosphere of intimidation that left Lively feeling isolated and degraded.
Baldoni Pushes Back
In response, Baldoni has denied all allegations, claiming that Lively’s lawsuit is a calculated move to rebuild her public image.
Per The Daily Mail, Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, stated that Lively’s decision to submit her complaint to the California Civil Rights Department rather than a court was part of a strategic ploy. The lawsuit, he argued, was designed to divert attention from a poorly conceived marketing strategy for the film.
The nub of the legal action which Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman has spent the past few days preparing is that Lively’s complaint, unusually submitted to the California Civil Rights Department rather than a court, is a ploy to rebuild her public image.
It will be claimed that an admittedly poor working relationship with Baldoni and a misconceived marketing strategy to sell a movie about domestic abuse suitable for a fun ‘girls’ night out’ became a social media frenzy in which millions of people turned detective to delve into the evident froideur between Lively and Baldoni.
Adding to the drama, Baldoni’s team has claimed that Lively planted stories in the press to paint him in a negative light. They also said that someone as powerful as Ms. Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, would never just sit around and let her be sexually harassed without saying anything.
A source who was involved in the situation tells me: ‘Do you seriously think that Blake Lively, married to one of the most powerful men in town and represented by one of the most powerful publicists, is going to sit meekly by if she is sexually harassed on a film set, and then hang on for four months after the film is released before making a complaint? It makes no sense.’
The source adds: ‘Look, they never got on. Justin is very spiritual and a kind of unusual person. He is what you might call ‘hippie dippie’. He thinks he can talk to dead people. Would he have said that he had spoken to Blake’s dead father? Yes absolutely. Did he harass her? He says not.
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The fallout from this feud has extended beyond the courtroom. Baldoni’s former publicist has filed a separate lawsuit against him, and he was dropped by his talent agency. Meanwhile, Lively’s costars, including Jenny Slate and It Ends With Us author Colleen Hoover, have publicly supported her. Baldoni’s podcast cohost also quit amid the scandal, and an award he was set to receive was rescinded.
Tensions reportedly escalated during post-production, when Lively brought her own editor onto the project and created a separate cut of the film. Baldoni, whose production studio owns the rights to Hoover’s books, was ultimately supported by studio executives, who chose his version over Lively’s.
A Messy End to a Promising Project
What was meant to be a powerful adaptation of a beloved book has devolved into a public relations nightmare. For fans of It Ends With Us, the off-screen drama has overshadowed the film’s intended message of resilience and hope. As the lawsuits unfold, the truth behind the allegations remains murky, leaving the public to wonder: whose story will ultimately prevail?
Whose side are you on—Blake Lively’s or Justin Baldoni’s? Do you believe Mr. Baldoni’s behavior was as harmful as Ms. Lively alleges, or could she be trying to boost her faltering public image? Share your perspective in the comments below!
