Opinion: Here Are All Of The Reasons Why I Think Blake Lively Stole "It Ends With Us" From Justin Baldoni

The story is that Blake Lively took over It Ends With Us while throwing Justin Baldoni under the bus with accusations of sexual harassment. Though she was initially brought on as an actress, she requested and received dailies (the daily footage from set). For the uninitiated, that’s typically restricted. She chose her BFF Taylor Swift's song, "My Bullets Ricochet," for the movie. She ballooned the wardrobe budget to about $400,000 and had the character Lily Bloom wear expensive clothes from brands like Yves Saint Laurent and Magnolia Pearl.

Most of all, she got a PGA credit – an important designation from the Producers Guild of America that shows she played a significant role in the film's production. All of this is alleged (don’t sue me, Blake!), but the question is why? Why would she go through all this trouble and take away Baldoni’s “baby,” the movie he worked on for five years? The internet thinks Taylor Swift might have something to do with it.

Blake Lively’s Alleged Takeover 

If you need a rewind or breakdown of the entire saga, check out some of our articles below before continuing.

• Justin Baldoni Claims Blake Lively Stole His Film From Him: A Comprehensive Timeline.

• Is This The Real Villain Behind The "It Ends With Us" Drama?

• Did Justin Baldoni Smear Blake Lively, or Is the Media Just Out of Touch With Organic Hate Trains?

• It Ends With Evidence? Justin Baldoni Brings Receipts Addressing Blake Lively Sexual Harassment Allegations

Let’s talk about the “takeover.” The timing of Lively’s sudden producer ambitions is interesting. The film marked her first major project after her 2022 Forbes speech, where she admitted she needed “authorship” to feel fulfilled in Hollywood. In this interview, she admits to being hired as an actress, but once she’s settled in, she tries to assert control. “Sometimes, I had directors or producers or writers who would welcome that and invite that once they saw that I was able to offer that, and sometimes I would have people who really resented that because they were like, we just hired you to be an actor,” Lively said in the resurfaced interview. “Yet when I went in the meetings, I would just seem like I'm just there to be the actor and ready to get the gig, I wouldn't reveal that I actually need to have authorship in order to feel fulfilled.”

She said it herself – Lively would go to the meetings to seem like she was “just there to be the actor” when she had a different goal in mind. If you hired someone to fix your AC and they started rearranging your furniture, repainting your walls, and pitching a full kitchen remodel, you’d probably have some questions. It seems to me that Lively has been strategizing her way to become a director or producer. 

Baldoni’s lawsuit also alleges that Lively and her husband Reynolds leveraged their industry clout to sideline him, with Reynolds allegedly making unauthorized script changes and Lively strong-arming the studio into allowing her to create her own director’s cut. 

Mommy sleuths figured out that Lively founded her production company, B for Effort (you can’t help but laugh), in 2020 and announced multiple projects, including Dark Days at the Magna Carta and Lady Killer. Despite these high-profile announcements, none of the films have progressed, leaving B for Effort with zero completed productions nearly five years later. I guess the name was less of a quirky choice and more of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Given this track record, some speculate that Lively’s takeover of It Ends With Us stemmed from her inability to get her own projects off the ground.

And if you don’t think Lively intended to take over the film from the beginning, get this. According to the official Producers Guild of America (PGA) guidelines, a producer’s duties include contributions to the story or script. And wouldn’t you know it – everything Lively did on It Ends With Us conveniently met the PGA’s criteria for producer credit, including "approving costumes" and "consulting on edits." Almost like she planned it from the start.

Blake Lively’s Motivation? ScarJo, Anna Kendrick, and Taylor Swift

Around the same time she was filming IEWU, Scarlett Johansson, her husband’s famous ex, announced her directorial debut, Eleanor the Great. One of Lively’s A Simple Favour co-stars, Anna Kendrick, also premiered her directorial debut, Woman of the Hour, on Netflix. Even Justin Baldoni (someone with significantly fewer industry connections than Lively) owns a production company. 

That’s a lot of women in Lively’s orbit making big Hollywood moves. This must be discomforting for her, considering how long Lively has been acting. She was only 17 when she started regularly auditioning for shows, and one of her biggest breaks was landing Gossip Girl, which happened over 16 years ago. Age of Adaline (2015) was a hit with a lot of women, but it still wasn’t enough to make Lively’s career reach the stratosphere like some might’ve expected after Gossip Girl.

For the past several years, Lively has also been raising four kids, which is wonderful, but that’s not exactly the “empowerment” story that Hollywood worships. This is an industry obsessed with ambition, independence, and girlbossing. Perhaps she was influenced to think that what she had wasn't enough. Plus, actresses who step back to focus on family often struggle to return with the same momentum, and Lively wouldn’t be the first woman in Hollywood to feel the pressure to prove she still “has it.” Maybe watching her peers branch out into directing and producing lit a fire under her. Maybe she felt like she had something to prove. Not just to Hollywood, but to herself. 

Now, let’s get into Taylor Swift.

Maybe Lively Really Wanted to Work on the Taylor Swift Movie After All

Lively and Swift go way back. She even directed Swift’s “I Bet You Think About Me” music video. However, Swift’s upcoming directorial debut with Disney changes the stakes. According to SheKnows, both Lively and Reese Witherspoon are vying for a producer role on a movie Swift will begin working on. Yet Witherspoon, a seasoned producer with nearly 50 credits, is the obvious choice. Despite her friendship with the pop star, Lively is a much riskier bet given her lack of experience. 

Could this explain why Lively allegedly pushed so hard for a producer credit on IEWU? It’s possible. If she were eyeing a producer role on Swift’s project, securing an official credit beforehand would have given her more leverage. Being best friends with Swift isn’t enough. At the end of the day, the singer still cares about her image and her work, and she won’t risk ruining her reputation. 

Is Ryan Reynolds Behind This? 

Reynolds, who is no stranger to Hollywood’s behind-the-scenes machinations, may have had his own reasons for encouraging his wife’s producer aspirations. According to Baldoni’s lawsuit, Reynolds allegedly meddled in IEWU’s script. The Reynolds party has denied this claim, despite Lively having stated herself that her husband wrote the rooftop scene in the movie. Given how Reynolds has solidified his place in Hollywood, it makes sense that Sony would back Lively up.

Maybe Lively felt confident in her actions because it mirrors what her husband, Ryan Reynolds, reportedly did. According to reports, Deadpool director Tim Miller dropped out of the sequel because “Ryan Reynolds wanted to be in control of the franchise.”

Or, we could go back to Candace Owens' theory: Reynolds was incredibly jealous of Baldoni and wanted to ruin his life.

To Summarize…

There are multiple ways to interpret Lively’s actions:

1. She wanted to work with Taylor Swift, but needed the clout to be considered. The timing of her producer push and her alleged interest in Swift’s movie is too close to ignore.

2. She felt pressure to match her peers. Watching ScarJo, Anna Kendrick, and even Baldoni land major directorial projects could have been a catalyst for Lively to take matters into her own hands.

3. Ryan Reynolds played a bigger role than we think. If Reynolds was involved in IEWU’s behind-the-scenes drama, was he also involved in encouraging Lively’s push for creative control?

She’s said herself that she wants authorship. Whether it’s genuine passion for filmmaking or a strategic move to solidify her Hollywood clout, she wants the world to see her as more than just a performer.

Maybe she got what she wanted (the producer title and credits), but at what cost? Her reputation has taken a huge hit. Lively didn’t want to be just an actress anymore? Well, guess what – now she probably won’t act again.