Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni feud: Inside alleged 'It Ends With Us' drama

It Ends With Us was released in cinemas this week, but forget the drama on the big screen – fans are busy speculating that Blake Lively has fallen out with director and co-star Justin Baldoni, which is leading us all to feel very reminiscent of the dramatic Don't Worry Darling press tour from 2022.

Adapted from a novel by Colleen Hoover, It Ends With Us follows Lily (Blake Lively) who overcomes a traumatic childhood to embark on a new life. In the present day, Lily has opened up her own flower business in Boston and she meets handsome neurosurgeon Ryle (Justin Baldoni) and she believes she's found her soulmate. However, Lily soon witnesses patterns of behaviour from Ryle that reminds her of her parents' marriage and a chance encounter with her former teen love interest Atlas (Brandon Sklenar) sends her whole world upside-down.

What happened between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni?

So what's going on between the two leads? So glad you asked, because there's a bit to unpack here.

Speculation of the two falling out has started to gain traction in the lead-up to the film's premiere, after fans spotted how little they've interacted during the press tour — in fact, they've promoted the film completely separately and had no interaction at all.

Over on TikTok, Reddit, and X, sleuthing fans have started to piece together what the issues may be, with many believing the two aren't on speaking terms, and somehow, Blake's husband Ryan Reynolds is also involved.

A source has told The Hollywood Reporter that "creative differences" arose post-production, citing that there was a fracture among the filmmakers where two different cuts of the movie emerged.

During the New York premiere of the film, Blake and Justin weren't spotted interacting, nor did they have photos taken together. Justin also skipped going to the UK premiere.

Fans think Justin has made some pointed comments

When asked why he was shying away from the spotlight when it came to the film, Justin said at the New York premiere that it "isn't his night".

"This isn't my night — this is a night for all the women who we made this movie for," he said." This is a night for Blake, this is a night for Colleen. I'm just so grateful that we're here, five years in the making."

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While some fans think that Justin didn't want to take centre stage given his character's storyline, others have speculated there's something more going on.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight during the New York premiere, Justin suggested that he would not be on board to direct a sequel to the film, should it happen.

"I think there are better people for that one," he said. "I think Blake Lively's ready to direct, that's what I think."

Ummm, so what does Ryan Reynolds have to do with all of this?!

People started speculating on social media that Blake brought Ryan in to help take over creative control of the film, and this theory was exemplified when Blake revealed at the premiere that Ryan wrote a key scene that happens at the beginning of the movie.

“We help each other. He works on everything I do. I work on everything he does. So his wins, his celebrations are mine and mine are his,” she said.

However insiders told Hollywood Reporter while Ryan did write a big chunk of the rooftop scene, he wouldn’t have had much time to focus elsewhere on the film due to his commitments with Deadpool & Wolverine.

So where does that leave Blake and Justin now?

Blake had a strong say in the creative direction of the film as she was listed as a producer, with Hollywood Reporter reporting that multiple sources said Blake commissioned a cut of the movie from editor Shane Reid (who was an editor on Deadpool & Wolverine). It's so far unclear if any of this cut was used in the final project, but another insider said the team was in "agreement" on the final cut.

While Justin has not commented on competing cuts of the movie, he has stated he took a step back at times to let the women on set take charge, given the film is told from a woman's perspective suffering from, and dealing with domestic violence.

Fans have also noted that in previous interviews Justin has praised Blake's creative vision. In an April interview, he said "everything she puts her hands on and her mind to, she made better".

However Blake hasn't said much about her working relationship with Justin or his influence on the film. In an interview posted on TikTok in August, Blake was asked how she built trust with Justin and went on a tangent about their characters instead.

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“I mean, this movie was such a challenge because you have scenes that are deeply painful and traumatic and physical, but you also have scenes that are full of levity and light and romance,” Blake said. “And normally, when I see this type of character like Ryle on screen, you know what's going to happen, and you're like, 'Ah, that guy's full of red flags.'

"Well, that was a wild answer," one fan commented. "Sorry, I might be lost, but did she answer?" another said.

"It's like a politician's answer," someone else pointed out.

It's important to note, due to the film's sensitive nature, it could just be that Justin is taking a step back from promoting it to let the women take the lead — but other fans are then questioning why Ryan Reynolds has stepped into the promo spotlight for the film too.

"Justin Baldoni had the best intentions to bring advocacy to dv but unfortunately picked the most pick me girl to ever exist to produce that film, who allowed her husband to bulldoze the PR and writing," one person ranted on X.

While we may never know the truth of what's going on between Blake and Justin, some fans have felt kind of nostalgic with all of this Hollywood drama.

"Welcome back Don’t Worry Darling press tour," one fan tweeted.

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