It Ends With Us has become a bona fide box office success since its robust $50 million opening two weeks ago. While the studio and all involved have much to celebrate, the release hasn’t been without its fair share of drama. An apparent rift between star Blake Lively and her director and co-star, Justin Baldoni, has dominated many of the headlines surrounding the film’s release. Internet spectators are dredging up old interviews of Lively in which she appears to act rudely in an effort to show some support for Baldoni. One person who isn’t having any of the Blake Lively shade is her other co-star in the film, Brandon Sklenar, who has come out to support the actress and dismiss all the online backlash the movie has been facing.
In a post on his Instagram, Sklenar seemingly not only defends Lively but also all the women in the cast and author Colleen Hoover, who wrote the book on which the film is based. The actor states, “Vilifying the women who put so much of their heart and soul into making this film because they believe so strongly in its message seems counterproductive and distracts from what this film is about.” Sklenar goes on to point to the behind-the-scenes drama but makes it clear that none of that should be the focus.
“It is, in fact, the opposite of the point. What may or may not have happened behind the scenes does not and hopefully should not detract from what our intentions were in making this film. It’s been disheartening to see the amount of negativity being projected online.”
The It Ends With Us Drama Has Been Well Documented
It Ends With Us
3.5/5
Based on Colleen Hoover’s 2016 novel, It Ends With Us is a drama-romance film directed by Justin Baldoni. The film follows a recent college graduate named Lily, who meets a man named Ryle and falls in love with him. However, a traumatic incident compounded with her former high-school sweetheart re-entering her life complicates her plans.
- Release Date
- August 9, 2024
The drama surrounding It Ends With Us didn’t appear obvious until a few days before its release. Fans sleuthing around on social media took notice of the fact that Baldoni, who directed and co-stars in the film, wasn’t doing any interviews with the other members of the cast and wasn’t photographed with them for the film’s red carpet premiere. For her part, Lively hasn’t mentioned Baldoni at all. In most interviews, Lively was either paired with other co-stars, solo, or appeared with husband Ryan Reynolds and their good friend, Reynolds’ Deadpool & Wolverine co-star Hugh Jackman.
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More speculation emerged during the film’s opening weekend, with some suggesting the issues started well before the press tour. From Lively allegedly feeling uncomfortable with Baldoni on set, to the director taking issue with Reynolds coming in to rewrite a pivotal scene in the film, the sleuthing and speculation began to take shape as fact, and soon the narrative shifted to vilifying Lively. Old press interviews of the actress began resurfacing online that made her appear “rude,” while some took the opportunity to remind everyone that Lively and Reynolds got married on a plantation. Others pointed to the fact that during her press tour for It Ends With Us, a film that deals with domestic abuse, the actress focused on more superficial aspects of the story while Baldoni, in the rare moment he has been interviewed, has made the domestic abuse themes his main talking point.
None of this turmoil has affected the film’s box office one bit. As of today, It Ends With Us has crossed the $100 million mark at the domestic box office and has pulled in a staggering $180 million globally on a $25 million budget. If anything this proves there is no such thing as bad publicity.
It Ends With Us
is currently playing in theaters nationwide.
