The Justin Baldoni ‘It Ends with Us’ drama, explained

It Ends with Us starring Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively tackles the heavy subject of domestic abuse, but the theme of the film took a backseat to the drama happening behind the scenes.

It Ends with Us is based on Colleen Hoover’s 2016 hit novel of the same name. The story follows Lily Bloom (Lively), a florist who falls in love with a neurosurgeon, Ryle (Baldoni). Things initially seem perfect until Lily finds out that everything is more complicated than it seems, as Ryle turns out to have an abusive side to him. At the same time, her high school sweetheart, Atlas, reappears in her life, making her question everything. The book was massively popular, but it had its share of negativity. From accusations of romanticizing domestic violence to the backlash of Hoover’s decision to release a coloring book tie-in for the novel, It Ends with Us has a difficult history.

Its adaptation isn’t doing any better. Baldoni bought the rights to the novel in 2019 through his production company Wayfarer Studios and came on board as director, actor, and producer. The road from the page to the screen was difficult, and it took a few years before the project started gaining momentum. Eventually, they cast the ever-lovely fashionista Blake Lively in the leading role in January 2023 and started filming shortly thereafter. However, as the Aug. 9, 2024 premiere date drew closer, the film was surrounded by controversy and drama, so here’s what we know.

What happened between Justin Baldoni and the rest of the cast?

You might know by now that Justin Baldoni has done the entire press tour for It Ends with Us alone. Blake Lively, Colleen Hoover, and the rest of the cast banded together like old friends, styling each other, wearing matching florals, and even baking together. All while completely avoiding Baldoni and — apparently — actively choosing to not follow him on social media, even though he follows them.

On Aug. 13, news broke that Baldoni hired a crisis PR veteran to help him amid all this drama. The Hollywood Reporter revealed Baldoni hired Melissa Nathan, who backed Johnny Depp during the actor’s legal trouble with ex-wife Amber Heard. I don’t know about you but that makes Baldoni’s situation seem even more serious.

Baldoni was not a part of any It Ends with Us press junket alongside the rest of the cast, and Lively and Jenny Slate downright avoided answering questions about working with him. Lively reportedly commissioned Deadpool & Wolverine editor Shane Reid to handle the post-production stage and she and Baldoni had two different versions of the film in the end. Both reportedly tested it with the audience and, although Baldoni’s scored higher, sources claimed they went with Lively’s version.

Justin Baldoni has been very vocal about Blake Lively’s contribution to the film and praised her and the on-set intimate coordinator for handling the difficult scenes. He was also the only cast member to address the real topic of the film, which is domestic violence. It Ends with Us received backlash for its floral marketing, as the PR surrounding it made it look like a rom-com instead of what it was — an exploration of domestic violence, survival, and self-love.

Rumor has it Justin Baldoni was difficult to work with

There were claims that Baldoni made the cast feel “uncomfortable” on set for his alleged “chauvinistic” and “borderline abusive” behavior, which might have led to the cast not wanting to have anything to do with him. “All is not what it seems,” an insider from the It Ends with Us set told People. “There is much more to this story. The principal cast and [author] Colleen Hoover will have nothing to do with him.” Not long ago, Hoover sang his praises and even convinced him to play Ryle against his initial refusal.

At the same time, other sources told TMZ that there’s “conflict” between the two main co-stars but that Baldoni is “not the clear-cut villain.” Crew members told the outlet he was “a nice guy to work with and cared a lot about the production.”

Fans online have shown their support for Baldoni and his realness amid Lively’s colorful PR and avoidance of the film’s real subject. However, it looks like the drama might be more serious than we initially thought and both seem to have a side of the story, so it could be a long while before we learn the truth, if we ever do.