Lively vs Baldoni: It Ends with Us Behind-the-Scenes Drama Sparks Speculation

It Ends with Us director Justin Baldoni's refusal to take part in the film's promotion gave rise to suspicions of a potential conflict between the director and actress Blake Lively.

Sources say that the rift began during filming. It is said that Lively, who is also a producer of the movie, tried to wrest control of the project from Baldoni.

Lively Reportedly Tried to Take Control of the Film's Production

Among other things, she changed the script and brought in her own editor, resulting in two different versions of the movie. The actress also decided that the film should be promoted as a romantic comedy, rather than a drama about abuse.

Lively called on her husband Ryan Reynolds to write a key scene on the roof. Insiders note that while the Deadpool star worked on the episode and wrote some of the dialogue, the bulk of the work was still done by screenwriter Christy Hall.

Lively also hired Shane Reid, who worked on Deadpool & Wolverine, to edit the film, but it is unknown if his edit was used in the final project. Oona Flaherty and Robb Sullivan are listed as editors in the credits.

Baldoni's conspicuous absence from joint press engagements and the fact that Lively and Baldoni were not pictured together at the New York premiere served to further fuel the fire of the purported feud between the two. Furthermore, outsiders once witnessed Lively and Baldoni arguing on set.

The Feud Could Actually Be a Marketing Campaign to Boost Film's Popularity

The cast and crew of the movie, however, think that the director and actress were just having creative disagreements and weren't really at odds.

Baldoni has already hinted that Lively has done a good job working on the melodrama and is capable of directing a sequel to It Starts With Us herself in the future. One of the actors also noted that the creators are deliberately inflating the hype around the scandal in an attempt to draw attention to the project.

Recently, Melissa Nathan, a public relations professional who formerly worked with Johnny Depp, was hired by Baldoni, presumably in an effort to improve his press image.

The director and the actress have not yet commented on the situation.