It Ends With Us cast drama explained amid Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni 'feud'
- Blake, 36, and Justin, 40, have avoided each other during the frosty press tour
- There are rumors of on-set tensions, including a feud between Blake and Justin
- READ MORE: Reporter calls out Blake Lively over 'uncomfortable' interview
It Ends With Us has become one of the most talked about movies of the year - for all the wrong reasons.
The romantic drama, based on Colleen Hoover's novel of the same name, follows Lily Bloom (played by Blake Lively) as she becomes embroiled in an abusive relationship with Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni).
The movie is already a $93 million box office hit but has been plagued by rumors of on-set tensions, a feud between Blake and Justin, and a frosty press tour.
Fans have been split by the off-screen drama, with some taking Blake's side and others branding her 'tone deaf' and a 'diva'.
DailyMail.com looks at the many scandals plaguing the troubled film.
![Blake Lively's new romantic drama film It Ends With Us has become one of the most talked about movies of the year - for all the wrong reasons](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/14/23/88539469-13743815-image-a-53_1723673133714.jpg)
Blake Lively's new romantic drama film It Ends With Us has become one of the most talked about movies of the year - for all the wrong reasons
How awkward press tour sparked rumors
Fans suspected Blake, 36, had beef with Justin, 40, after sensing tension between the stars at the New York City premiere on August 6.
The pair didn't pose for any pictures together despite playing the two main characters and love interests.
She happily took photos with costars like Jenny Slate and Brandon Sklenar, but not Justin.
Two days later, Blake attended a photo call in London with some of the other stars - but Justin was mysteriously absent.
The two haven't done any press together in the weeks leading up to the release.
Instead, Blake sat down for an interview with her costar, Brandon, last month; she and Brandon also participated in a promotional video with It Ends With Us stars Alex Neustaedter and Isabela Ferrer, but Justin had no part in it.
Eagle-eyed social media users also noticed that Blake and the author Colleen unfollowed Justin on Instagram recently.
![Fans suspected that Blake, 36, had beef with Justin, 40, after sensing some tension between the stars at the New York City premiere earlier this month](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/14/23/88539491-13743815-Fans_suspected_that_Blake_36_had_beef_with_Justin_40_after_sensi-a-63_1723673914098.jpg)
![Blake and Justin didn't pose for any pictures together at the event, despite playing the two main characters and love interests in the flick](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/14/23/88538917-13743815-Blake_and_Justin_didn_t_pose_for_any_pictures_together_at_the_ev-a-64_1723673914336.jpg)
Fans suspected that Blake, 36, had beef with Justin, 40, after sensing some tension between the stars at the New York City premiere earlier this month
On-set clashes and claims of 'borderline abuse'
Insiders revealed the concerning truth about the on-set tensions, telling DailyMail.com that Blake and Justin clashed over his 'dismissive' attitude to her 'input' while they were filming scenes that involved abuse.
The insider claimed that Justin focused only on 'what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint' and had a very 'chauvinistic' approach to the topic.
'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,' they said.
'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.'
They said things only got worse once he began to feel 'ganged up on' by the women on set.
'Now, he's speaking praises, likely out of fear that they'll call him out', the source said.
'He knows it's coming and might try to blame his actions on being a method actor.'
Allegations of fat-shaming in lifting scene
Blake allegedly felt 'fat-shamed' by Justin and was uncomfortable with a kissing scene she had with him in which she believed he 'lingered' for longer than was necessary.
Amid swirling rumors of a feud between the duo, a new report has shed light on two alleged incidents involving Justin that made Blake feel uncomfortable.
TMZ reports that the alleged fat-shaming stemmed from preparation for a scene in the film which saw Justin lift Lively into the air.
Insiders told the website that Justin suffers from back problems and sought assistance from a trainer prior to the lifting scene.
Justin allegedly asked the trainer how much Blake weighed and asked for help preparing his back to avoid incurring an injury.
When Blake learned about Justin's comments, she allegedly felt fat-shamed by him.
![Blake allegedly felt 'fat-shamed' by Justin on the set of It Ends With Us](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/14/23/88539485-13743815-image-a-61_1723673470077.jpg)
Blake allegedly felt 'fat-shamed' by Justin on the set of It Ends With Us
Crew turns on Blake
The It Ends With Us cast and crew have not all sided with Blake, a source has claimed, alleging that many people feel Justin was 'screwed' creatively.
Production sources have quashed rumors stand with Blake saying that many in the crew view director and star Justin favorably.
Speaking to TMZ, sources claimed that Justin was 'generally a nice guy to work with and cared a lot about the production'.
The PR war heats up
Justin has turned to the well-regarded PR crisis manager Melissa Nathan for help, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Melissa is best known for representing Johnny Depp during his defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
She represented Depp while she was at Hiltzik Strategies and the controversial actor then jumped ship to join her at her new firm.
![Justin has turned to a top Hollywood PR crisis manager to help him through the backlash](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/08/14/23/88538915-13743815-image-a-62_1723673559609.jpg)
Justin has turned to a top Hollywood PR crisis manager to help him through the backlash
Fans start to turn against Blake for 'tone deaf' interviews
As rumors of the feud persisted, social media reaction began to turn against Blake, who has been criticized for her responses in interviews promoting the movie.
She was blasted as 'tone deaf' and 'shallow' after she hosted an interview with her It Ends With Us costars and failed to discuss the serious message behind the movie.
Social media users were quick to slam them - particularly Blake, who hosted the interview - for failing to speak about the topic given the serious nature of the film.
'This is a movie about abuse, can you promote please appropriately?' one asked.
Another said, 'This is the most tone deaf thing I've ever seen. This movie is about domestic violence, why are you promoting it like it's a Barbie movie?'
'When are you gonna talk about domestic violence? Trying to play this movie off as a fun romcom is wrong and disgusting,' a different user scathed.
Several hours later Blake took to Instagram to share information about domestic violence, as well as resources for her followers.
'Everyone deserves relationships free of domestic violence,' she wrote.
Blake was also slammed online for turning an interviewer's serious question about domestic violence into a 'joke'.
When reporter Jake Hamilton asked her if people who related to what her character went through could talk to her about it if they saw her in person, her sarcastic response caused outrage.
Rather than encouraging domestic violence victims to seek help from professionals or sharing resources available to them, Blake laughed at the concept of making herself available to them.
She sarcastically replied, 'Ask for my address or my phone number.'
'Or I could just share my location with you and then we could...,' she trailed off before laughing.
A user on X, formerly Twitter, shared a clip of the interview and wrote: 'A major ick. Finally seeing who Blake Lively is [as] an individual and it's ugly.
'Appalled at how she turned a deep, personal, serious question into a joke,' one person responded.