Spilling the Tea: Juicy Behind-The-Scenes Drama of “It Ends With Us”

Drama, Controversy, and “It Ends With Us”
So, you finally catch a break from the endless workweek and decide to treat yourself to a night at the movies. You pick “It Ends With Us,” hoping for some romantic drama, only to find out that the real drama is happening off-screen. Let’s jump into the juicy bits:

Baldoni, Lively, and the Social Media Unfollow Game
Remember the days of high school drama playing out on social media? Well, it seems like not much has changed in Hollywood. Justin Baldoni, the director, seems to be getting the cold shoulder from almost everyone involved in the movie. Rumor has it that even Colleen Hoover, the book’s author, hit the unfollow button. Yikes! Looks like things are as intense behind the scenes as they are on screen.  Hints that things were off surfaced at the New York and European premieres when Baldoni did not pose for the cameras with anyone else involved in the movie and wasn’t participating in joint interviews. Fans speculated that this was a marketing tactic, given that he plays an abusive husband, but that conjecture was quickly discarded when it became obvious that there does seem to be some serious beef behind the scenes.  That begs the question: What happened?

Creative Differences or Spouse Intervention?
It seems Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively may have had a showdown of epic proportions.  There are whispers about creative clashes, script rewrites, and even a mysterious ‘alternative cut’ of the film. Did Ryan Reynolds swoop in to save the day, or did things just get a bit too heated in the editing room? The plot thickens, literally. 

Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, secured the rights to the book and announced in 2023 that Lively had signed on to star. Both of them had executive producer roles. Interviews on the press tour suggested there were creative differences between Baldoni and Lively. The suspicions of differences were further fueled by Lively’s revelation that Reynolds had a hand in the script. Nevertheless, the screenwriter, Christy Hall, told People that she was unaware of any rewrite and instead thought the actors were improvising. Additionally, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Lively commissioned a cut of the film from Shane Reid, the same editor who worked on “Deadpool & Wolverine.” The biggest unanswered question gripping Hollywood is whether Baldoni or Lively’s cut is what ultimately got released.

Marketing Missteps and TikTok Takedowns
Now, let’s talk about the marketing mess. Blake Lively’s promotional tactics are raising eyebrows, to say the least. From a hair care line to fashion commentary, the transition to discussing the sensitive subject matter of abuse seems to be, well, a bit jarring. On the official “It Ends With Us” movie TikTok page, Lively says, “Grab your friends, wear your florals and head out to see it.” For many on social media, that seems off for a film about domestic violence and has led to TikToks of people mocking her light approach. One TikTok user, @hiremeimfunny, even posted a series titled “if other movies were promoted like ‘It Ends With Us.'” Meanwhile, Justin Baldoni is all about raising awareness and providing resources for those affected by domestic violence.  It’s like a battle of priorities, with Lively aiming for floral fashion statements while Baldoni’s out here trying to make a difference.

Despite the on and off-screen drama, “It Ends With Us” is still raking in those box office numbers and while it’s uncertain what the outcome of these controversies will be, it’s clear that they’ve sparked discussion around important issues such as domestic violence and the role of marketing in film promotion.

Perhaps there is no beef and they’re doing all of this just to get people talking about the film.

Who knows?