Actress Blake Lively has been the subject of some controversy related to her drama film It Ends With Us (which is streaming with a Netflix subscription). Prior to Lively's lawsuit against the production company, she was the subject of some backlash online related to her interaction with journalists, as well as how she promoted the film. No one is talking about one point Lively's complaint made, but I do think it's germane (and Justin Baldoni is not involved).
Much of the drama surrounding It Ends With Us lately is related to both Lively's complaint, as well as Baldoni's own lawsuit against the New York Times. But in Lively's suit (which can be read via The NY Times), the 37 year-old actress addressed the movie's somewhat infamous marketing campaign, which she got plenty of flak for. The document reads:
Leading up to an in connection with the release of the Film, during the summer of 2024, Ms. Lively and fellow cast members promoted the Film in accordance with the Marketing Plan created and delivered by the Film's distributor Sony, which is summarized in the 'talking points' attached hereto as Exhibit C. Ms. Lively and other cast members were under a contractual obligation to render promotional services in accordance with the Marketing Plan.
This sounds pretty standard for a film's release. But it's important to remember that Lively and the rest of the crew were given instructions for exactly how to promote It Ends With Us ahead of its release in theaters; the Gossip Girl alum wasn't simply going off script or making big marketing decisions herself.
In that same section of Lively's complains, she explained that she and the cast were instructed not to focus on It Ends With Us being a story about domestic violence. This would explain viral clips of the actress being cheery in interviews, and encouraging moviegoers go wear florals to theaters. As it reads:
The Marketing Plan directed the cast to 'focus more on Lily's strength and resilience as opposed to describing the film as a story about domestic violence' and to 'avoid talking about this film that makes it feel sad or heavy [sic]- it's a story of hope.'
While this isn't perhaps the most scandalous part of Lively's lawsuit, it does offer new context to It Ends With Us' marketing. The actress was the subject of some backlash related to how she promoted the book to screen adaptation, but she was apparently instructed and contracted to do so.
Of course, the legal situation surrounding the movie is a complicated one that's showing no signs of slowing down. Both Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively were named in Baldoni's own suit, and it remains to seen if they actually face off in court. But Lively's complaint definitely helped to explain the way the film was promoted.
It Ends With Us is streaming now on Netflix. Check out the 2025 movie release dates to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
