It ends with us an actor Brandon Sklenar chose a festive mood as Blake Livelycase against their colleague and director Justin Baldoni made headlines.
Sklenar, 34, was spotted celebrating with him Miles Teller and his wife Kelly Tellertogether with Chace Crawford and more friends. “Annual white elephant x @drinkolipop 🐘 🎄,” Kelly, 32, wrote Instagram photo dump on Sunday, December 22nd.
She shared a sneak peek of the holiday decor – including stockings and a dazzling Christmas tree – and included a group photo of the guests. Sklenar could be seen in the back corner as the partygoers showed off their gifts.
Sklenar stars alongside Lively, 37, and Baldoni, 40, in the film adaptation of Colleen Hoovera popular novel by that hit theaters this summer. As the cast promoted the film’s release, fans began to wonder if there was tension between Lively — who also served as a producer — and Baldoni. Despite playing love interests on screen, the pair were not seen doing press together or posing with each other on red carpets.
“There were two camps in the movie — Team Blake and Team Justin,” a source exclusively speaking Us Weekly in August. “That creative struggle set the tone for the negative experience behind the scenes and it escalated into them not talking anymore.”
While rumors swirled of drama between the two leads, Lively also faced backlash for seemingly downplaying the film’s domestic violence plot while doing press. (Her character, Lily, escaped an abusive relationship with Ryle, played by Baldoni, with the help of her old flame Atlas, played by Sklenar. She ended up sharing domestic violence resources online.)
Sclenar addressed the dispute in a lengthy Instagram statement shared in August, appearing to come to Lively’s defense. “Colleen and the women in this cast are about hope, perseverance, and about women choosing a better life for themselves. “Defaming the women who put so much of their heart and soul into making this film because they believe so strongly in its message seems counterproductive and distracts from what this film is about,” he wrote at the time. “In fact, it’s quite the opposite.”
He continued, “What may or may not have happened behind the scenes does not, and hopefully should not, detract from our intentions in making this film. It has been disheartening to see the amount of negativity that is being broadcast online.
Sklenar insisted that “there’s not a single person involved in making this film” who isn’t “aware of the responsibility we have in doing this,” adding, “This film is a harsh reality check for men , who need to come together and take responsibility for themselves and their actions.”
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively on the set of It Ends with Us.
Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC ImagesMonths after It ends with us hit theaters, drama resurfaced. The news broke on Saturday, December 21 that Lively sues Baldoni for sexual harassment and “severe emotional distress.”
According to Lively’s complaint, a meeting was held during the film’s production to address some of her concerns about the “hostile work environment” on set. She requested “no more showing of Blake’s nude videos or images of women, no more mention of Baldoni’s alleged past ‘porn addiction,’ no more discussion of sexual conquests in front of Blake and others, no more mention of the actors and team’s genitalia, no more inquiries about Blake’s weight, and no more mention of Blake’s dead father,” as well as “no more addition of sex scenes, oral sex, or climax on camera from BL outside the scope of the script approved by BL at the time of signing the project.’
Months after a reported rift between It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, she sued him for sexual harassment. In the lawsuit, which was filed on Friday, December 20, and obtained by Us Weekly after being reported by TMZ and The New York Times, Lively accused Baldoni of starting (…)
Lively also alleged that Baldoni orchestrated a campaign of “social manipulation” to “destroy” her reputation. Baldoni’s lawyer, Brian Friedmanrejected the “completely false, outrageous and deliberately obscene” allegations in a statement to usclaiming that Lively filed her complaint to “fix her negative reputation.”
In a statement to New York TimesLively said neither she nor anyone on her team spread negative information about Baldoni. “I hope my legal action will help pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to hurt people who speak up about wrongdoing and help protect others who may be targeted,” she continued.
Baldoni was reportedly dropped by WME after Lively’s lawsuit made headlines. Sklenar did not address the legal drama, but Hoover supported Lively via social media on Saturday.
“Blake Lively you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met,” she wrote. “Thank you for being exactly who you are. Never change. It never will.
