The hullabaloo around It Ends With Us simply refuses to let up, with the most recent development coming courtesy of Blake Lively, a controversial magazine cover and… a slingshot?
ICYMI, Lively recently graced the cover of The Hollywood Reporter’s new issue, though not in the way she might’ve hoped.
Titled “Blake vs. Baldoni” and promising “an exclusive look behind the battle lines of the It Ends With Us uncivil war,” the cover story features the warring co-stars in illustrated form, with Lively seen brandishing a slingshot aimed at Justin Baldoni.
Blake Lively vs. Justin Baldoni
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) February 21, 2025
An exclusive look behind the battle lines of the #ItEndsWithUs uncivil war: https://t.co/UryXmLrDcT pic.twitter.com/r8VI1SOcNf
For his part, Baldoni — who also directed It Ends With Us — is seen holding a copy of the Colleen Hoover book upon which the film is based, with the Hollywood sign looming in the background.
Honestly, there are enough details to warrant a video essay analysis (why are they giving David and Goliath? How can I achieve Lively’s effortless windswept hair? When will all this end?), but Lively has since slammed the cover as “outrageously insulting.”
“The Hollywood Reporter should be ashamed of itself,” a spokesperson for the actress told Daily Mail. “The framing in this picture is outrageously insulting as it plays into every sexist trope about women who dare file a workplace complaint, turning them into the aggressor, and suggesting they deserve the retaliation that comes their way.”
The spokesperson’s comments refer to the original lawsuit filed by Lively last year, in which she alleged that Baldoni had sexually harassed her while they were filming It Ends With Us. She also accused the actor of orchestrating a smear campaign against her once the allegations came to light, with Baldoni denying all allegations and filing a $400 million countersuit in response.
Lively’s spokesperson also took issue with the cover’s accompanying story, which explored how Baldoni’s Baha’i faith may have “inadvertently contributed” to the much-publicised dispute.
Among other tidbits, the story suggested the pair’s legal battle may have stemmed from a “cultural misunderstanding,” a characterisation which Lively rejected.
“The story is extremely offensive as it incredibly seems to explain away documented examples of sexual harassment and retaliation by calling them ‘cultural misunderstandings,'” the spokesperson said.
Baldoni has yet to comment on The Hollywood Reporter cover story, but his lawyer recently weighed in on the seemingly unending legal dispute.
“I can’t think of anyone who’s done anything like that,” Bryan Freedman said of the joke made by Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, at the SNL 50 show last week.
“I’m unaware of anybody, frankly, whose wife has been sexually harassed and has made jokes about that type of situation.”
Lively and Baldoni will face each other in court next year, with a trial date set for March 9, 2026.
Lead image: TheStewartofNY/WireImage and The Hollywood Reporter/ The Sporting Press
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