What you need to know

From the moment Justin Baldoni announced in 2019 that he would turn the best-selling book “It Ends With Us” into a movie, there has been widespread craze.

There are few books in recent years that have become as big a cultural phenomenon as Colleen Hoover's novel — it has sold 20 million copies and become an internet sensation on TikTok with over a billion tags on the app.

When Blake Lively, who rose to fame in the 2000s when she played Serena van der Woodsen in Gossip Girl, was cast as the lead character, fans became even more excited, calling her the perfect choice to play Lily Bloom, a young woman growing up. Witnessing domestic violence and ending up in the same situation years later.

Lily, a Boston florist, navigates a complicated love triangle between her charming and abusive boyfriend, Rael Kincaid – played by Justin Baldoni, who plays Jane the Virgin – and her compassionate first love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar).

The film was released at the beginning of August, and was a huge success at the box office, earning more than $350 million (£280 million) globally.

But despite its financial success, not everything was going smoothly behind the scenes. Rumors of a feud between Baldoni and Lively began circulating before the film's release.

Last week, Lively filed a legal complaint against her co-star. Accusing him of sexual harassment and starting a slander campaign against herThis is something Baldoni strongly denies. Here's the story so far:

For a film about domestic violence, the press tour for It Ends With Us may not have been what you expected. There were pink carpets, flowers galore, and promotions for Lively's new hair care brand and her husband's gin company.

Instead of promoting on the red carpet, Lively put the spotlight on fashion and flowers.

At the London premiere, the press were asked to keep questions “fun and light” with one of the event organizers asking me to “stay away from questions about domestic violence”.

One of her statements she made at the New York premiere — “You are much more than just a survivor or just a victim” — sparked backlash on social media.

Domestic violence survivor Ashley Paige She criticized Ms. Lively's language She told the BBC that the trauma she experienced “shaped my identity.”

Lively was also criticized for her comments in another goofy promotional video where she said: “Take your friends, wear your flowers and go out to see her.”

Ms. Page accused Lively of promoting the film as if it were a “Barbie sequel.”

Along with the press tour being described as “tone deaf,” people began asking questions about why Lively and Baldoni weren't photographed together on the red carpet at the film's New York premiere on August 6.

The pair also didn't give any interviews together during the press tour and at the London premiere, which Baldoni did not attend, Lively's team warned me not to “ask any questions about Justin.”

Internet sleuths also discovered that cast members including Lively and author Hoover did not follow Baldoni on social media.

Neither Lively nor Baldoni addressed rumors of a feud during the press tour and the only mention of each other was Baldoni saying today that his co-star was a “dynamic creator.”

“She had her hands in every part of this production, and everything she touched made it better,” he said of the 37-year-old actress.

While the film was a box office success, it received mixed reviews from critics, with some saying it romanticized domestic violence.

There was Two-star review from Tim Robey of The Telegraphwhich described it as a “disturbing drama” that “recasts domestic violence as a sweet romance.”

He suggested that the film “misdelivers and flamboyant flirtation in the big city to highly questionable effect.”

The film also sparked controversy on TikTok, with some saying that it's not clear from the trailer that this story is about an abusive relationship, but rather it appears to be a love story.

Based on this misconception, some people said they found the film shocking because they did not know it contained scenes of domestic violence.

During the press tour for the film, Baldoni hired a crisis manager, Melissa Nathan, whose previous clients have included Johnny Depp and Drake.

Shortly after the press tour, Lively faced a barrage of criticism on social media regarding her comments on that tour as well as from old interviews.

One interview that has resurfaced was one shared by Norwegian journalist Kjersti Vla, who posted a YouTube video of her interview with Lively in 2016. It was titled “The Blake Lively interview that made me want to quit my job.”

Actor Brandon Sklenar, who plays Atlas in the film, defended Lively and said in an Instagram post: People were “vilifying” the women involved in the film online.

He said it was “frustrating to see how much negativity is being shown” and that someone close to him who had a similar relationship to Lily's credited the film with “saving her life”.

Four months after the film's release. Lively filed a legal complaint Against Mr. Baldoni, she accused him of sexual harassment.

The complaint also lists Wayfarer Studios, Mr. Baldoni's production company that produced “It Ends With Us,” as a defendant.

The legal filing accuses Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer's chief executive, Jimmy Heath, of “repeated sexual harassment and other harassing conduct.” The filing claims some cast and crew also spoke about their behaviour.

It also alleges that Lively, Mr. Baldoni and other people involved in developing the film attended a meeting in January to address a “hostile work environment” on set. Her husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, attended the meeting alongside her, according to the complaint.

At the meeting, attendees agreed to a list of demands, including that Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath “stop describing their genitals,” requiring an intimacy coordinator to be on set at all times when Ms. Lively is in scenes with Mr. Baldoni and is not “friends.” to producers and directors during filming when Ms. Lively was in a state of nudity.

The list of demands also notes that Mr. Baldoni asked Ms. Lively's trainer about her weight and that Mr. Baldoni and Mr. Heath allegedly talked about their “addiction to pornography” to Ms. Lively.

In the filing, Ms. Lively also alleges that Mr. Baldoni and his team attacked her public image after the meeting.

She accuses him of orchestrating a plan to “destroy” her reputation in the press and online, including hiring a crisis manager who led a “sophisticated, coordinated and well-financed retaliation plan” against her and used a “digital army” to spread it. Social media content that looked real.

“To protect against the risk of Ms. Lively revealing the truth about Mr. Baldoni, the Baldon-Wayfarer team created content designed to discredit, plant, amplify, and promote Mr. Baldoni,” Ms. Lively’s team wrote in the filing.

Ms Lively says in the filing that this led to “significant harm” affecting “all aspects” of her life.

Mr Baldoni's legal team told the BBC that the allegations were “completely false”, and said they had appointed a crisis manager because Ms Lively had threatened to derail the film unless her demands were met.

In response to the legal complaint, Baldoni's attorney, Brian Friedman, said on Saturday: “It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives.”

Mr. Friedman accused Ms. Lively of making numerous demands and threats, including “threatening not to show up on set, and threatening not to promote the film,” which could ultimately lead to “its demise during release, if her demands are not met.” .

Hollywood stars including America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn and Alexis Bledel She publicly supported Lively after she filed her complaint.

Ferrera, Tamblyn and Bledel, who starred with Lively in the 2005 film The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, issued a joint statement on Instagram on Sunday saying they “stand with her in solidarity.”

“Throughout the filming of It Ends with Us, we saw her muster the courage to demand a safe workplace for herself and her colleagues on set, and we are horrified to read evidence of a deliberate and retaliatory effort that followed to discredit her voice.” “They wrote.

Colleen Hoover, author of It Ends With Us, also showed her support, calling Lively “honest, kind, supportive and patient.”

Additional reporting by Grace Dean.