How Blake Lively And Justin Baldoni's Alleged Feud Became A PR Showdown

You're likely aware of the alleged drama surrounding It Ends With Us, the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel. Despite its innocent pink cover, the BookTok fave captured the hearts of the many victims of domestic violence. With Blake Lively starring as Lily Bloom and Justin Baldoni as Ryle Kincaid, juggling the roles of director and actor, IEWU is poised to become one of 2024's biggest hits. However, behind the flower-powered, lighthearted press tours and high-profile interviews, a storm is brewing over the film’s promotion.

In the past few weeks, we've seen Lively in a classic Versace dress worn by pop queen Britney Spears; meanwhile, Baldoni has spoken out about domestic violence in his interviews. Fans couldn't help but bring attention to the contrast in their PR approach. Critics say that Lively is tone-deaf, in her J-Lo era, and "self-centered," especially given her recent launch of a hair care line, Blake Brown. Because of this, thousands of fans have sided with Baldoni, who has yet to be photographed with Lively at press tours.

While the two seemingly ignored each other, sleuths stayed busy trying to determine the cause of the alleged feud. But with so many news pieces swirling around, it's easy to get lost in the flood of information provided by elusive "sources," who may very well be from Baldoni's and Lively's PR teams, each working to sway the narrative in their favor.

There have been reports of major "creative differences" and conflict between the co-stars, and the feud rumors have, unfortunately, overshadowed the film's intended message. TikTokers wonder whether Lively's husband, Ryan Reynolds, took creative control in the film, sidelining Baldoni. Insiders also told The Hollywood Reporter that "post-production tensions ended with two different cuts of the film," leading the audience to believe that the couple was behind the divide. According to the Daily Mail, not all members of the It Ends With Us cast and crew are on Lively’s side. A source has claimed that many believe Justin Baldoni was "screwed" creatively.

However, the reports siding with the Gossip Girl star say that the director made the actress uncomfortable. TMZ says tensions between Lively and Baldoni began well before the It Ends With Us press tour. Other reports indicate that Baldoni made Lively uncomfortable during filming, particularly in a scene where he needed to lift her character. Baldoni, who has a history of back problems, asked an on-set trainer for Lively's weight to avoid injuring himself. Lively felt this was body-shaming, especially since she had recently given birth to her fourth child with Ryan Reynolds. I would probably be offended, too, but was Baldoni supposed to risk a back injury? Lively is 5'10" tall, so while she's visibly fit and gorgeous, she's probably heavy because of her height.

TMZ seems to be siding with both. In one article they published, their sources claimed that Justin was "generally a nice guy to work with and cared a lot about the production." Yet, another question arises: Is it possible that all of this PR backlash against Lively was a tactic to shift attention away from the allegations about Baldoni making the cast uncomfortable? Page Six previously claimed that Baldoni allegedly created an “extremely difficult” work environment.

Following the intense backlash Lively faced, she shared an Instagram Story on domestic violence and posted a hotline for victims, but many feel her efforts came too late.

Who’s To Blame?

Let's go back to Reynolds. Is the Deadpool actor deeply involved because he supports Blake in her comeback role after four years away? Did their close involvement in the project clash with Baldoni’s vision? It’s understandable how watching your spouse in passionate scenes could be uncomfortable. So, while people have argued that Reynolds is controlling (I mean, is he really controlling if he allows his wife to act and make out with another man?), it's more likely he just wanted to respect his wife’s boundaries. It’s not unreasonable to think that he would tone things down, and honestly, who can blame him for that? The film is about domestic abuse anyway and shouldn't focus on hot, steamy sex scenes.

While I agree that Lively has been very "light and fluffy" during her tours, it’s not like she controls the questions or how the press engages with her. And maybe the two agreed that they'd handle each press tour differently. Baldoni might be sticking closely to the book to appeal to its devoted fans, while Blake is casting a wider net, engaging with an audience that might not be familiar with the book but is drawn to her star power. Both strategies bring in the money and views.

And let's not pretend that Lively and Reynolds are the worst couple ever when they've donated $1 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) “to help children in Israel and Gaza."

In the meantime, Baldoni has brought in a crisis PR pro to handle the reaction to his rumored feud with Lively and the It Ends With Us cast. As reported by Us Weekly, the director has enlisted crisis PR veteran Melissa Nathan to help manage the situation.

No one knows what went down behind the scenes. Maybe Baldoni truly was mean to Lively, or perhaps Lively and Reynolds were too involved and exerted too much control, or maybe Baldoni, as the director, wanted more say in the project. There are a lot of unknowns, but I'm pretty sure we're witnessing a carefully orchestrated PR play, with both stars' teams feeding selective information to shape public opinion.

Alternatively, this so-called feud may just be a ruse to draw more attention to the film. Either way, it seems to be working – the movie has already grossed over $86.2 million worldwide.

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