A major player just stepped into the Blake Lively/Justin Baldoni drama… A Sony CEO.
As all eyes have been fixed on the It Ends with Us co-stars amid their reported rift, Sony Pictures Entertainment Chair-CEO Tony Vinciquerra made a bold move by taking sides… With Blake! In a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, the film executive commended her, author Colleen Hoover, and the many women involved in making the movie for their “care” in handling a difficult subject:
“Blake, Colleen, and so many women put so much effort into this remarkable movie, working selflessly from the start to ensure that such an important subject matter was handled with care. Audiences love the movie. Blake’s passion and commitment to advancing the conversation around domestic violence is commendable. We love working with Blake, and we want to do 12 more movies with her.”
Notice anything? He left out any praise of Justin, who co-starred and directed the thing! Sony really did just declare #TeamBlake. Damn.
Related: Here’s What Blake & Justin DID Agree On For It Ends With Us
And it’s funny… Isn’t Blake’s lack of conversation surrounding domestic violence — the film’s subject matter — the very thing fans have been grilling her for on social media?? As we’ve been following, netizens aren’t happy with the way Blake has been handling the movie’s press tour. She’s seemingly been making a concerted effort to sell the film as a lighthearted affair, even going so far as to encourage fans to “grab your friends” and “wear your floral” to their screenings as if it’s some sort of cheesy rom-com! She’s been accused of “making a joke” out of the sensitive subject matter, and has continuously posted frivolous promotional videos on her Instagram feed promoting the movie.
And when the backlash got loud, she responded by posting a message about domestic violence awareness and sharing a link to the National Domestic Violence Hotline… but on her IG Story… Not even her feed! Meaning after 24 hours, that important message vanished from her social media page, leaving what fans have referred to as her “tone deaf” promo vids on her feed.
Justin, on the other hand, has taken the COMPLETE opposite approach to his end of promo — which mind you has been carried out completely detached from Blake and the rest of the cast! We mean, the two wouldn’t even pose for a pic together on the red carpet! In his interviews, Justin has been consistently raising awareness about abuse, rather than gushing about Taylor Swift like Blake. He even partnered with an anti-domestic abuse nonprofit!
It’s impossible to not recognize their difference in tone! So remind us, HOW exactly is Blake’s effort to advance “the conversation around domestic violence,” as Mr. Tony Vinciquerra suggested, more “commendable” than Justin’s? Given we don’t know the full extent of what happened on set, this feels a bit like an ambush! It really makes one wonder if those early claims about Blake and Ryan using their star power to win over Sony in the battle for creative control are true…
We’ll just have to wait and see how Justin responds. But based on what we’ve seen, he’ll probably just keep talking about domestic abuse instead of defending himself. Hmm.
Thoughts, Perezcious readers?? Sound OFF in the comments down below!
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Consider calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233, or text START to 88788, or go to https://www.thehotline.org
[Images via ELLE UK/YouTube & Phil Lewis/MEGA/WENN]
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