It Ends With Us having one of the most entertaining off-screen dramas was not on our bingo cards but guess what? That’s exactly what happened. The film, which premiered to great success over the summer will soon be heading to Netflix but star Blake Lively is already over it.
On Nov. 25, Netflix announced on social media that It Ends With Us is heading to streaming on Dec. 9, 2024. The film is based on Colleen Hoover’s 2016 novel of the same name, and it stars Lively and Justin Baldoni, who also directed the adaptation. It Ends With Us follows the story of florist Lily Bloom who gets into a relationship with doctor Ryle Kincaid, but later discovers he is not who she thought he was as he reminds her of her abusive father.
It Ends With Us was a smash hit over the summer, grossing $349.7 million at the worldwide box office. That resulted in a lot of profit for Sony Pictures and Baldoni’s Wayfarer Studios, as the adaptation only had a budget of $25 million (via The Numbers). Since Sony has a partnership with Netflix, it’s not a surprise this is the streaming platform of choice following the film’s success. However, the adaptation wasn’t only surrounded by acclaim but also controversy.
Blake Lively is distancing herself from It Ends With Us
It Ends With Us marked Blake Lively’s most exciting role since… ever. The beloved star was mostly celebrated for her real-life humor and apparent relatable persona, plus her funny exchanges with her husband, Ryan Reynolds. However, the It Ends With Us press tour was not what she expected and was surrounded by backlash.
The actress, widely known for her fashionista style and similar Gossip Girl role as Serena van der Woodsen,proved her acting skills with It Ends With Us, giving Lily a lot of her mannerisms and her expensive wardrobe.
At the same time, despite her initial excitement to portray the character from Colleen Hoover’s novel, the film’s backlash led to her distancing herself from the film.
Blake Lively was hands-on during this press tour, being as fashionable as always, with floral and pink dresses, jokes, and everything else. However, she didn’t expect the backlash she received for overlooking the domestic violence theme of the movie, and, weeks after awakening headlines, Lively stopped addressing It Ends With Us altogether.
The announcement that It Ends With Us will be heading to streaming on Netflix was met with silence on Lively’s part. She is back to posting often on her Instagram account, and she did post several Instagram Stories since the Netflix announcement. However, they were related to Half Baked Harvest and her love for baking cookies, not the successful film she starred in over the summer.
The actress also didn’t react to Justin Baldoni’s late September announcement that It Ends With Us was heading to digital and she has been silent since Netflix’s announcement.
The controversy surrounding Lively goes beyond the film’s outrageous marketing scheme and her desire to promote herself. There have been numerous allegations of tensions on the set between her and co-star and director Justin Baldoni. Neither has addressed anything but, while Baldoni did his best to praise Lively’s efforts as an actress and producer, she failed to mention him in all interviews and downright avoided him at the film’s red carpet premiere.
Amid the announcement and Lively’s silence, fans online wrote on Netflix’s post that “we want the Baldoni cut,” a reference to Lively allegedly hiring a different editor for the ending. Sony reportedly used her version, with fans asking to see the original. Since August, Blake Lively may have forgotten that It Ends With Us existed but she might bring awareness to it when the film premieres on Netflix on Dec. 9. At least, we hope she does.
Published: Nov 26, 2024 08:57 am