Hollywood loves a scandal, especially one where pretty faces turn ugly behind the scenes. But this one? This one had it all. Star-crossed lovers, marital tension, a career revival gone rogue, and a man who couldn’t keep his jealousy on a leash. The courtroom might’ve hosted the climax, but this drama was boiling long before Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni ever stood before a judge.
The Comeback That Cracked Open Everything
Let’s start with Blake. For ten years, she played the ultimate supporting role. Not on-screen, but off. Four kids, red carpets, and diaper duty while Ryan Reynolds churned out blockbusters and co-owned a football club across the Atlantic. She was visible, yes. But only as Ryan's plus-one. Her sparkle dimmed—buried under breastfeeding schedules and brand deals that had more to do with her husband’s empire than her own ambition.
Then came It Ends With Us. Based on a bestselling book, packed with emotional weight, and built around the theme of domestic abuse—it was the sort of role actors dream about. This wasn’t a fluff rom-com. It was a comeback statement. Blake saw it as her long-overdue turn in the spotlight. So did her fans. And Justin Baldoni, who was directing and co-starring, saw the film as a passion project.
Unfortunately, Ryan Reynolds saw something else.
Enter the Control Freak
At first, it was subtle. A few “suggestions” on set. A couple of production notes here and there. But soon, Ryan was everywhere. Literally. Backstage. Behind the monitor. Whispering into scripts. And eventually, into Blake’s ear.
Crew members started to notice. Changes to scenes. Rewrites. Strange rules that didn’t come from the director. Baldoni, who had a clear vision for the story, was constantly undermined. Then the rumors started—that Blake was being difficult, demanding too much control, threatening not to show up if things didn’t go her way.
But let’s be real: none of this smelled like Blake.
Sources close to the production say most of the drama came from Reynolds pulling strings behind the curtain. Like a stage mom on steroids. The irony? He’d done the same with his exes—Scarlett Johansson, Alanis Morissette. Manipulation dressed up as “care.” Oversight disguised as “support.”
Then came the bombshell: sexual harassment allegations against Baldoni, filed by none other than Blake herself.
Wait, What?
Yes. In a movie set packed with people, where every move was captured on film, Ryan managed to convince his wife to take a very public—and very messy—swing at her co-star. The same co-star she had passionate scenes with. The same man who, just months prior, she praised during press junkets.
Justin was blindsided.
His reaction? Hire a PR team. Release text messages. Show receipts. According to his team, their relationship was strictly professional. No late-night texts. No crossing the line. Just actors doing a job. But Baldoni wasn’t just fighting a legal battle. He was fighting the Reynolds machine. And that machine is brutal.
The Hollywood Domino Effect
Once Ryan turned on you, the gates closed. Fast.
Studios pulled back. Sponsors ghosted. Even Taylor Swift reportedly iced Baldoni out of some planned collaborations. (The Swift-Reynolds friendship is no joke. She babysits their kids. She writes lyrics about them. If you're on her bad side, good luck.)
Even Brandon Sklenar, another actor in the film, flipped like a pancake. He backed Blake. Spoke up against Baldoni. Why? Well, fear works faster than loyalty. He didn’t want to be the next target. And since he didn’t have any love scenes with Blake, he stayed in the safe zone. But it didn’t end there.
In one bizarre twist, Sklenar appeared in an interview… with Ryan. And Ryan’s mom. They grilled him with awkward questions about Blake. As if this was some creepy audition for future son-in-law approval. It was awkward. It was weird. It was classic Ryan, wrapped in fake charm and a smirk.
The Questions That Just Won’t Die
Let’s pause here and ask the obvious: If Reynolds really saw something inappropriate, why didn’t he raise hell on set? Why wait months, until after the film’s release? Why let the press tour roll on—featuring his wife promoting their alcohol brand, by the way—before lighting the match?
And if he was really that protective, why did he allow Blake to film such intimate scenes in the first place?
The answers don’t add up. What does add up is this: jealousy.
Ryan Reynolds, for all his jokes and high-profile friendships, couldn’t stomach watching another man share emotional and physical space with his wife—even if it was for a role. And when Blake seemed a little too alive in those scenes, he lost it. He held it together just long enough to avoid public suspicion. Then he pulled the trigger.
And the fallout? Ugly. Expensive. Career-threatening.
Behind the Glamour: The Real Reynolds Family
Dona Bowling, a well-respected casting director, recently admitted that Baldoni was always a pro. Meanwhile, the Reynolds-Lively household? Known for power plays and diva behavior. Many in the industry won’t say it out loud, but off-record? They’re exhausted by them.
The brand is squeaky clean. The couple is adored on social media. But behind closed doors, insiders whisper about tantrums, ghosted deals, and manipulation masked as strategy.
And now, Blake’s comeback is tainted. Baldoni’s name is bruised. And Reynolds? He walks away unscathed, cracking wise in interviews and basking in the glow of his billion-dollar box office returns.
But some stories don’t fade with time. They fester. They simmer.
And this one? It’s not over.
