Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s new film, It Ends With Us, has proven to be a box office hit, grossing $50 million during its opening weekend. While the cast should be riding high on the film’s success, they’ve instead found themselves embroiled in controversy as reports swirl of behind-the-scenes drama involving differing final cuts of the movie, alleged body-shaming and much more.
“There were two camps on the film — team Blake and team Justin,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly. “This creative struggle set the tone for the negative experience behind the scenes and grew into them not speaking anymore.”
In addition to starring alongside Lively, 36, Baldoni, 40, directed the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel of the same name. (The novel is based on Hoover’s parents’ abusive relationship.) Baldoni is also the cofounder and cochairman of Wayfarer Studios, the production company behind It Ends With Us, meaning that most of the crew and extras on set reported to him.
Despite his leadership role, the insider says that Baldoni felt “hurt and sidelined” as Lively allegedly made decisions about the script and wardrobe changes, “often without consulting Justin or his team.”
“[Justin] was made to feel that his vision wasn’t as important as Blake’s, and it stifled the creativity on set,” the source continues.
A second source, however, tells Us that “any changes or input by Blake was to create the best film possible and honor the book.”
During the press tour, Lively revealed that her husband, Ryan Reynolds, rewrote the rooftop scene where Lively’s Lily and Baldoni’s Ryle meet for the first time. It has also been widely reported that Lively tapped Deadpool & Wolverine editor Shane Reid to commission another cut of the film.
“Blake was a producer and worked closely with Colleen and other female team members on set,” the second insider says. “Without [Justin’s] input does not mean [she went] behind his back.”
Although the first source tells Us that the “creative differences” between Lively and Baldoni “had been building up since day one” of production, the insider acknowledges that “at the end of the day, the version [of the film] in theaters is one that everyone is happy with.”
In addition to Lively’s rift with her costar — a third source tells Us that Lively “does not have a good opinion” of Baldoni, who has been accused of questioning how much she weighed before lifting her up on set and kissing her too long in a separate scene — the actress has received social media backlash from fans who claim that she did not take the film’s domestic abuse subject matter seriously enough while promoting it. Sony Pictures Entertainment Chair-CEO Tony Viniquerra defended Lively in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, August 14.
“Blake, Colleen and so many women put so much effort into this remarkable movie, working selflessly from the start to ensure that such an important subject matter was handled with care. Audiences love the movie. Blake’s passion and commitment to advancing the conversation around domestic violence is commendable,” Vinciquerra said. “We love working with Blake, and we want to do 12 more movies with her.”
Neither Baldoni nor Lively has publicly addressed reports of their feud. However, Lively hinted at creative disagreements on set during a Saturday, August 10, interview with Hits Radio UK, in which she discussed the use of Lana Del Rey‘s song “Cherry” in the film.
“They begged me to take that song out of the movie,” Lively said, without identifying who “they” was. “I’m not supposed to be talking about this.”
Baldoni, meanwhile, seemingly referenced Lively’s strong vision for the film when asked whether he would direct an It Ends With Us sequel.
“I think there are better people for that one,” he told Entertainment Tonight at the film’s New York City premiere earlier this month. “I think Blake Lively is ready to direct. That’s what I think.”
Baldoni also played coy about reprising his role as Ryle if Hoover’s sequel It Starts With Us is adapted into a film.
“You’re gonna have to ask me in a little while,” he said. “We’re gonna take a vacation after this.”
