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Aug 287 min read

Baldoni V. Lively: A case of passion or promotion?



August 26, 2024

Hana Karaselimovic 


Trigger Warning: This article touches on topics such as Domestic Violence/Abuse. If you or anyone you know is currently suffering from DV, help is available. CALL 800-799-7233 or TEXT 88788. Everyone deserves a relationship free from Domestic Violence. 


The highly anticipated adaptation of the NYT bestseller “It Ends with Us,” by author Colleen Hoover, premiered two weeks ago and was met with an 80 million dollar opening weekend. While the film has noticeable flaws and changes, one thing stays the same: It holds a place in representing domestic violence. The book/film follows the titular character of Lily Bloom(played by Blake Lively) as she breaks the generational cycle of domestic violence and abuse by her husband, Ryle Kincaid(Justin Baldoni), before the eventual birth of their daughter. But the real “story behind the story” unfortunately lies between Baldoni and Lively themselves and how sensitive topics such as domestic violence should be the primary focus rather than rumors and self-promotion. 

Now, I went into the film relatively blind. Honestly, I hadn’t even realized it was centered around DV and breaking a cycle of trauma until I was in the movie theater with my popcorn and slushie. The only time I had ever heard of the film was on BookTok(iykyk), and even then, I had just heard sly comments about Colleen Hoover’s subpar writing. I thought it was a romcom. And from film reviews I’ve seen, it looks like many women went into it from a similar perspective.

You see, the film was promoted in two very different ways. Promotion A) Justin Baldoni and his focus on domestic violence, with his many interviews and speeches about how the book’s message was compelling, and Promotion B) Blake Lively seemingly pushes the main topic of the film to the sidelines and instead promotes it as a “girly” film to watch with your friends while wearing flowery attire(to represent Lily Bloom of course), and has seemingly used the film to promote many of her outside “endeavors,” which has sparked backlash. 

Let’s hone in on Promotion A(a.k.a Justin Baldoni) for this first part. Baldoni’s history with the book makes you understand his determination to see this story adapted to the screen. He says that after initially reading the book, he actually optioned it in 2019, “when it had sold just under a million copies,” he stated in his interview with CBS Morning. Baldoni continues to say that while he was keen to adapt this film, he was “always going to come in with his own biases” as a man and always wanted this film to have a female perspective. He goes on to show his pin of No More Org, an organization that strives to end domestic violence, and discusses how men can benefit from watching the film. Further, when talking about why women don’t leave abusive situations such as Lily’s, he states, “That’s the wrong question to ask. What we need to be asking ourselves is, why do men harm?”. It’s clear that Baldoni set out to make a film that served as representation for many women out there suffering from DV, and it was his primary drive in its adaptation.

Then there’s Promotion B(a.k.a Blake Lively). Ironically, Blake Lively did a separate interview also with CBS morning, alongside fellow cast member Brandon Sklener(who plays Lily Bloom’s other love interest, Atlas Corrigan), just two days after Baldoni’s initial interview on the seventh of August. I’m not kidding when I say this….it’s like two completely different movies are being promoted. While domestic violence is a focus of Baldoni’s interview, you wouldn’t even know it was a part of the story if you watched Lively’s. Brandon Sklener is the only one to actually somewhat bring up the idea of Lily having trauma, stating that he hopes women “feel empowered, and they feel seen, and they feel heard, and they find some hope to take steps to change their life; it’s incredibly challenging to be in any situation that is remotely close to what Lily’s going through,” but would you be able to draw that she is a domestic violence survivor from Sklener’s statement? Probably not. I find it especially troubling that it’s not even brushed upon, as many women can go into the film thinking it may just be a “relationship with obstacles” rather than a portrayal of domestic violence that can trigger them. As for Lively’s statements, she says she was excited to “deliver something to a group of passionate people, as someone who is deeply passionate myself.” While I question the word excitement, seeing as it doesn’t quite align with the heaviness of filming a story such as Lily’s, I feel like this is maybe one of the more demure and mindful statements Lively makes. We see in many other interviews that Lily’s story and the book itself is never really the focus, and Lively will defer to talking about how Lily’s wardrobe is mostly her own and the music choices in the film(Particularly pertaining to her friend Taylor Swift). I don’t think she understands who Lily Bloom is, almost describing her as “any other strong female character.”Now, while I do feel like Lily is not meant to be an insanely specific character, and I think it’s what helps many women relate to her, she is much more than the character Lively seems to describe her as. I feel like the character of Lily Bloom almost falls into the background of Lively’s self-promotion and reveals her actual misunderstanding of the novel. 

Unfortunately, I do have to discuss Lively’s endeavors outside of simply acting in the film and how it can take away from what should be the focus of it. Alongside simply playing the titular character, Lively served as a producer. I see the benefits in this since it provides the much-needed female perspective Baldoni was looking for. I’ve decided not to address and speculate rumors, so I won’t discuss anything regarding Lively’s takeover of Baldoni’s directing role because I think this article holds more weight if we just go off of facts. But, I can discuss Lively’s hair care brand launch and her cross-promotion with her husband’s(Ryan Reynolds) new film “Deadpool vs. Wolverine.” First off, Lively launched her hair care brand “Blake Brown Beauty”, which was very much in line with the film’s premiere, seeing as the hair brand officially started selling in Target on the fourth, and the movie was in theaters on the ninth of August. While she does state it is “years in the making,” and that’s very plausibly true, there is a rising question of why the launch is so closely associated with the film.

On top of that, there seemed to be some sort of “cross-promotion” going on between It ends with us and Ryan Reynolds(Blake Lively’s husband) new film Deadpool vs. Wolverine, seeing as there’s been cross interviews and the cast were at each other’s premier. This point wouldn’t hold so much weight if it was simply Reynolds and Lively attending each other’s premier since they are married, and they would simply be showing their partner support. However, Hugh Jackman(Wolverine) was also in attendance, giving this point credibility. With a topic as heavy and important as this one, many fans have argued that this should not be the space for self-promotion but rather recognition and acknowledgment of the many women/individuals who have experienced domestic violence. 

As I see it, there are two arguments to be made. Argument A is that the film can indeed be a pillar of representation for thousands of women in the world who are suffering from domestic violence, and the promotion should represent that, and Argument B is that while the film covers serious issues, Blake Lively can address both the domestic violence shown in the movie, while promoting herself and her brands. The problem is that argument B doesn’t hold strong because Blake Lively doesn’t understand the message of the film and the very point of the book itself. Lily is more than just a survivor(as Lively has said in many interviews), but that isn’t the argument of the story. The trauma we see Lily’s mother endure has a ripple effect on Lily, who also suffers through DV later in her life.

Similarly, more than half of adults who suffer domestic violence have been abused in some way throughout their childhood(Office for National Statistics). This story isn’t about Lily being a survivor but about her strength and her choice to stop a generational cycle. Every trauma a person endures will have this ripple effect unless they choose to halt it. 

This story is a powerful one, as it resonates with many. It’s unfortunate that so many individuals, especially women, may go into the film believing that it’s similar to a romcom, and end up being triggered by the portrayal of an abusive relationship. At the end of the day, those women are the real people affected. Baldoni’s message wasn’t just to spread awareness but to ensure no women went into the film blind due to Lively’s false promotion. When handling a topic as sensitive as domestic violence, the victims should be at the forefront of our minds, not hidden behind hair care brands and rumors, but instead the driving force behind making movies like these. “It Ends with Us,” has noticeable flaws as a film, but its message, along with the women that relate to it, make the story something more than just an adaptation: It’s a beacon of hope to all survivors out there. 





Citations 


“Blake Lively and Brandon Sklenar on bringing ‘It Ends With Us’ to life.” Youtube, CBS Mornings, 9 Aug 2024,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DrE3Ih46Y0&t=378s

“Blake Lively's interview about It End With Us sparks conversation”. YouTube, Fox 32 Chicago, 14 Aug 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBR5qybqYGc​​

“Justin Baldoni Talks ‘It Ends with Us’ Movie Adaptation”. Youtube, CBS Mornings, 7 Aug 2024,https://youtu.be/niSOhLp-jdE?si=qpxDcBMnDbZkHWK6









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