In a shocking twist, Blake Lively filed a lawsuit against It Ends With Us co-star/ director Justin Baldoni, accusing him of a disgusting smear campaign, as well as sexual harassment. The adaptation of Colleen Hoover‘s book was filled with controversy from start to finish, but as it turns out, we’re nowhere near the finish line. Now the author has weighed in on the matter.
If you’re not up-to-date with all the messiness, I’ll brief you. Justin Baldoni of Jane the Virgin fame owns a production studio, Wayfarer Studios, which, in 2019 optioned the romance novel It Ends With Us. Author Colleen Hoover was over the moon to have her first adaptation, and she further convinced Baldoni to star as the antagonist male character, Ryle Kincaid. Development took a long time and, in January 2023, Gossip Girl star Blake Lively joined the cast as Lily Bloom to everyone’s dismay, as she was deemed too old for the character from the novel. Further photos from the set showed her in horrible outfits that were not anyone’s dream costume designs.
Come the August 2024 premiere, Lively hadn’t participated in any promo with Baldoni, instead publicizing the film with her other co-stars and the author. She also brought her husband Ryan Reynolds and his Deadpool 3 co-star Hugh Jackman with her for the red-carpet premiere to celebrate the couple’s back-to-back releases.
As the promotional rounds began, Lively was caught in a wave of backlash for her floral, careless promotion of a film about domestic violence. Older interviews showing her mean-girl persona resurfaced, and Lively couldn’t seem to find a way out, as she just kept swimming to redeem her image. Further details claimed she and Reynolds, who is not a part of the film, took creative reins from Baldoni, and that Sony Pictures, which distributed the film, chose her cut of the ending. All this led to multiple controversies, but nothing was as it seemed.
Colleen Hoover continues to show support for Blake Lively
After an intense few months during which Lively was the internet’s persona non grata, with everyone believing less-famous Baldoni to be the kind of man we need to support feminism instead, the actress hit the director and producer with a lawsuit. In the document, Lively claims she experienced sexual harassment and retaliation from several complaints on set, leading to a lengthy public smear campaign.
In the meantime, Hoover continued to show her support for her leading lady. Following the release of Lively’s legal complaint on Friday, Hoover took to her Instagram Stories to show support, while sharing a link to the lawsuit and a photo of the two hugging at a screening of the movie.
You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met. Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt.”
Everyone was wondering about Hoover’s massive switch, as she had been supporting and praising Baldoni since he optioned the novel. During the press tour stage, the two didn’t interact, with Hoover and the rest of the cast standing by Lively.
Following the online release of the lawsuit, Lively released a statement, too, via Deadline.
I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted.”
The story is far from over, with the lawsuit going on and both sides making serious claims, so it will be a long time before it ends with them.
Published: Dec 23, 2024 07:13 am