Two years ago, Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni seemed excited to work with each other as they landed the lead roles in the film It Ends with Us.
Based on the best-selling book by US author Colleen Hoover, which also went viral on social media, fans couldn’t wait for the movie adaptation as characters Lily Bloom and Ryle Kincaid were brought to life on the big screen.
Despite previously praising each other in interviews, by the time the movie was released there were fallout rumours. And Blake, 37, and Justin, 40, refused to promote the film together, instead doing red carpet photos and interviews separately.
But no one was expecting Blake to file a shock sexual harassment lawsuit just a few months later. In it she claims Justin, who is married and has two children, behaved inappropriately towards her and other members of the cast and crew.
This included claims he let his ‘friends’ watch her film sex scenes, added sexual scenes she hadn’t approved to the film, discussed his past porn addiction and showed her nude images and videos of women on his phone and ‘fat-shamed’ her on set.
Justin has denied the claims and called the lawsuit a “desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation” following a backlash over Blake’s own behaviour. Here’s a timeline of what’s happened so far…
January 2023 – Blake and Justin sign up to work together on It Ends with Us
On January 26, 2023 it’s announced that Gossip Girl star Blake Lively and Jane the Virgin’s Justin Baldoni had been cast to play the lead characters Lily and Ryle in the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s 2016 hit novel It Ends with Us. Baldoni is also named as the movie’s director.
Making the cast announcements on her Instagram feed, author Colleen revealed how the book – which is loosely based on her own experiences growing up – saw her mum ‘get us out of a scary situation and brought us to this house’ as she stands outside her childhood home.
She then revealed: “Our Lily is going to be played by Blake Lively – Blake Lively y’all! She’s my dream Lily.” Sharing who her leading man is, she added: “And then when I first met Justin Baldoni, who is directing the film for us, I immediately wanted him to be Ryle. I just thought that he had what it takes to play that character. And the good news is, he’s going to be Ryle – so we have our Ryle and our Lily.”
May 2023 – Filming of the movie starts, but is halted
The first scenes for the movie are shot in May 2023 on location in New Jersey.
But due to the writers’ strike in the US, production shut down later that month. Another strike began in July 2023, which caused chaos for the TV and film industry in America.
Filming eventually restarts properly in January 2024 and the movie is shot in full. The release date was originally scheduled for February 9, 2024, but this is pushed back twice. First to June 21, 2024 and then to its actual release date of August 9, 2024.
August 9, 2024 – Justin says Blake is ‘perfect female heroine’ as film is released
It Ends with Us hits cinemas worldwide, with Blake saying it’s an ‘honour’ to play lead character Lily.
She told PEOPLE: “Lily resonated with an enormous amount of people, as the success of the book made clear. Stepping into a character who’s had such a meaningful impact is an honour to take on. I loved Lily, and I hope that love is felt by those who care about her like I do, and also those who are getting to know her for the first time in this film.”
Justin seems equally proud of the project, which he had already been working on for five years at this point after securing the movie rights to the book.
He told the same publication the film “really comes from the heart and from the depth of my soul”, adding: “I had to dig up a lot of stuff, and I found parts of me that I didn’t know existed. In some way, playing Ryle was actually very healing to me as Justin. Getting to know this character and his depth and his love and his joy and his darkness, I was actually able to work on those parts of myself.”
Praising his co-star, Justin described Blake as “strong, funny and intelligent — all the things you want from a female heroine” and said: “There wasn’t a part of this production that she didn’t touch and have influence on. And everything she put her hands on and her mind to, she made better.”
August 13, 2024 – Feud rumours start as Blake and Justin avoid each other on promo tour
During the press tour for the movie, it’s clear something is wrong as Blake poses with all of her co-stars for photos, apart from Justin. They even do press interviews separately, which is odd for two leading stars. Around this time, it’s also noticed that Blake, It Ends with Us author Colleen and other cast members unfollow Justin on social media, although he still follows them.
Reports emerged that Blake – who is married to Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds – felt ‘fat-shamed’ during filming for one scene in which Justin was supposed to pick her up. He reportedly asked how much she weighed just months after she gave birth to her fourth child, a son named Olin. Though it’s been said Justin suffers from a back injury and didn’t want to trigger it. It was reported Blake also felt uncomfortable during a kissing scene with Justin, believing he lingered longer than necessary.
Though neither of them publicly say anything at this time, a source told DailyMail.com they had clashed over Justin’s alleged ‘dismissive’ attitude to her ‘input’ while they were filming scenes for the movie that involved abuse. It’s said he took any suggested edits ‘personally’ and this led to a ‘tense atmosphere’ on set.
The source claimed: “During scenes depicting abuse, Justin failed to consider Blake’s character’s perspective, instead focusing solely on what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint. His approach was very chauvinistic, creating a tense atmosphere on set.
“Justin almost became the character in the sense that some women on set felt he was borderline abusive to them and that he was unprofessional and unapologetic. Directing a film so serious and so important about domestic abuse without allowing the women to be included in this process is disturbing.”
The source said things only got worse once he began to feel ‘ganged up on’ by the women on set. They added: “Now, he’s speaking praises, likely out of fear that they’ll call him out. He knows it’s coming and might try to blame his actions on being a method actor.’
August 26, 2024 – Blake ‘fears career is over’ after backlash from fans
Blake faced a backlash over the way she promoted the film as fans called her ‘tone deaf’ for not acknowledging the deeper domestic abuse themes, missing an opportunity to raise awareness, highlight support services, and encourage those affected to seek help. While promoting it on social media, a clip of Blake went viral as she told fans: “Grab your friends, wear your florals, and head out to see it” – with some saying her statement was at odds with the dark subject matter of the movie.
She was also accused of being ‘rude’ on set and to fans, as unearthed clips claimed she was also rude in press interviews. And it’s said she “bullied” Justin after it emerged she had allegedly taken control of the film’s final edit, with the help of her famous husband Ryan Reynolds. This shift in control led to director and star Justin not being credited as a producer and reportedly affected the film’s promotion. Justin has since suggested that Blake might be a better fit to direct any future sequels.
Following the backlash, Blake is said to have been forced to retreat from the spotlight and to “reassess her future.” A source told DailyMail.com: “Blake is definitely saddened by the hate she is getting and is trying not to let it affect her, but it is.
“She thought this was her moment to shine, but is now looking at it like the end of her career. She’s fearing no one will want to work with her after this. She really wants to continue producing and directing and acting, but she knows she needs to take a step back for a minute to reassess the future.”
But sources claim the feud went beyond Justin’s clash with Blake. A source told PEOPLE magazine: “All is not what it seems. There is much more to this story. The principal cast and Colleen Hoover will have nothing to do with him.”
December 21, 2024 – Blake sues Justin in sexual harassment lawsuit
On December 21, 2024 Blake files a sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin over his alleged behaviour while they worked together, which she says caused her “severe emotional distress.”
According to legal papers seen by US outlet TMZ, Blake accused Justin of creating a “hostile work environment that nearly derailed the production of the film.”
She claims he walked into her trailer ‘uninvited’ while she was undressed, improvised kissing scenes and added sex scenes that included oral sex and her climaxing on camera to the script, which were not approved when she signed on to the project. She claims he also let some of his ‘friends’ watch her film sex scenes.
Blake further claims he showed her and other employees nude images and videos of women and discussed his previous porn addiction, as well as talked about his sexual conquests in front of Blake and the cast and crew’s genitalia. She says he also made comments about her dead father.
Justin denies the allegations calling them “completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media.” A statement via his lawyers called it a “desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film”.
Blake, on the other hand, believes there has been was “a coordinated effort” by Justin’s PR team “to destroy her reputation” during the promotion of the film, which she is now seeking to try and repair.
December 22, 2024 – Justin is ‘dropped by his talent agency’, who still represent Blake
Justin was reportedly dropped by his talent agency on December 22, 2024, just a day after Blake filed her sexual harassment lawsuit against him.
Talent firm WME is said to have made the decision on Saturday, while Blake is still being represented by the company, according to Deadline. The Mirror has contacted Justin’s reps for further comment on this story.
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