The leading stars of It Ends With Us , Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, were spotted having a passionate discussion while filming in New Jersey . The conversation was captured in January but in light of the recent feud rumours , the pictures have resurfaced. In the movie, Blake is in the lead role of Lily Bloom opposite Justin as antagonist Ryle Kincaid.
Their characters strike up a relationship, but soon it takes a turn for the worse as Lily is reminded of her own parents’ abusive relationship in her childhood. The situation worsens when her first love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar), re-enters her life. As well as acting, Justin, 40, is a director, and Blake, 36, served as a producer, on the highly-anticipated adaptation of Colleen Hoover ’s 2016 bestselling BookTok sensation – it is clear both are committed to getting the movie right and successful.
Earlier this year, the pair were in a park to film a scene and in the photos taken of the workday, Justin was holding a monitor and directing Blake, who was pushing a young girl on a swing. Soon, they became engaged in a conversation, which seemed to get quite animated. Blake is seen using large hand gestures, as another producer looks on, and her facial expression possibly communicates that she was shocked at what she was witnessing.
However, they could also just be walking through the scene and explaining exactly what they want. Fans have been analysing the previous movements, as speculation about tension behind the scenes has recently intensified while the cast promoted the movie. Fans theorised that something was going on after Justin was not seen hanging out with his co-stars during the New York premiere.
Instead, Justin took photos with his wife Emily Baldoni, relatives and producers. While he also hasn’t been involved in press interviews with his co-stars. One TikTok user @clairenotdanes , who called the drama ‘very strange’ – pointed out that Justin follows the majority of the cast and crew on Instagram, but none of them follow him aside from a handful such as comedian Hasan Minhaj.
To add to the drama, another video is circulating on social media of a seemingly tense conversation on a separate day of filming. Captured in May 2023, Justin is seen waving his hands before Blake says ‘OK’. The cast has often avoided answering direct questions about Justin and have not responded to the feud rumours.
During the premiere, actor Jenny Slate (who plays Ryle’s sister Alyssa) was asked about what it was like to work with him as a co-star and director. She described his role as an ‘intense job’ before quickly circling it back to herself by adding she just wants to have ‘one job at once’. Blake has also notably steered away from discussing Justin in interviews, and has not addressed any of the speculation, but Colleen did describe Justin as a ‘truly kind person’ in a comment to Variety .
However, Justin spoke about how great it was to work with Blake, describing her as an ‘all-encompassing creative who makes everything she touches better’. In an interview with Movies.ie, he said: ‘I believe she gave the performance of a lifetime, and I can’t wait for people to see how great she is in this film.
’ When asked if he would return for an adaptation of the second book It Starts With Us , he said: ‘I think there are better people for that one. ‘I think Blake Lively’s ready to direct. That’s what I think,’ he added to Entertainment Tonight.
Justin told Elle magazine that any friction led to a better film. ‘There are all these things that happen every day on set, there’s always friction that happens when you make a movie like this. Then at the end of the day, it’s that friction, I believe, that creates the beautiful art,’ he explained.
‘Everything in life needs friction to grow. And look, we created something so beautiful and so magical, and it was hard, and it was worth it at the same time. And I grew so much as both a filmmaker, an actor and as a person throughout this experience.
’ Beyond its behind-the-scenes drama, the film has also courted accusations of glamourising abusive relationships , with some people accusing the film of being marketed as a light-hearted romance in spite of its darker themes. Justin recently addressed the criticism in an interview with the Associated Press. ‘It makes perfect sense people would feel that way.
Also, if anybody has had that real-life experience, I can imagine how hard it would be to imagine their experience being in a romance novel,’ he empathised. ‘To them, I would just offer that we were very intentional in the making of this movie.’ It Ends With Us made an estimated $50 million in its box office opening weekend.
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