Justin Baldoni was ‘chauvinistic’ and ‘borderline abusive’ on the set of It Ends with Us – and sparked fury over his refusal to ‘consider’ the perspective of costar Blake Lively’s character while filming scenes that depicted abuse, insiders have claimed.
Rumors of a vicious feud between Justin, 40, and Blake, 36, have been swirling for weeks, with online sleuths highlighting how the on-screen love interests were not pictured together at the films US premiere – while some cast members have blatantly swerved questions about the director.
Now, insiders have revealed the concerning truth about the tensions, telling DailyMail.com that Blake and Justin clashed over his ‘dismissive’ attitude to her ‘input’ while they were filming scenes that involved abuse.
The movie, which hits theaters today and is based off of Colleen Hoover’s hit novel of the same name, follows Blake’s Lily Bloom, a floral designer who falls in love with neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid, played by Justin – but soon after they start dating, the romance turns toxic.
Justin Baldoni was ‘borderline abusive’ on the set of It Ends With Us – and sparked fury over his refusal to ‘consider’ the perspective of costar Blake Lively ‘s character, insiders claim
Rumors of a viscous feud between It Ends With Us costars Justin, 40, and Blake, 36, have been swirling for weeks
The insider claimed that Justin only focused on ‘what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint’ and had a very ‘chauvinistic’ approach to the topic.
‘During scenes depicting abuse, Justin failed to consider Blake’s character’s perspective, instead focusing solely on what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint,’ they said.
‘His approach was very chauvinistic, creating a tense atmosphere on set.’
The source claimed Justin was ‘borderline abusive’ on set, and said he ‘almost became the character.’
‘Justin almost became the character in the sense that some women on set felt he was borderline abusive to them and that he was unprofessional and unapologetic,’ they said.
‘Directing a film so serious and so important about domestic abuse without allowing the women to be included in this process is disturbing.’
The insider alleged that the actor, who also served as director and producer, ‘failed to recognize’ both Blake and Colleen’s roles as a fellow producer and writer.
And they said he took it ‘very personally’ when the pair asked for some script rewrites.
A source told DailyMail.com that the tension between Blake and Justin stemmed from him being ‘dismissive’ of her ‘input’ while they were filming scenes that involved abuse
The insider claimed that Justin only focused on ‘what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint’ and had a very ‘chauvinistic’ approach to the topic
‘Without Colleen’s book, none of this would have been possible,’ they pointed out.
‘Parts of the film were rewritten under the instruction of Colleen – they had to be. He took their script decisions very personally, even though they weren’t intended that way.’
They said things only got worse once he began to feel ‘ganged up on’ by the women on set.
‘His behavior extended beyond the main players,’ the source continued. ‘Once he felt ganged up on, he became even less empathetic.
‘Now, he’s speaking praises, likely out of fear that they’ll call him out. He knows it’s coming and might try to blame his actions on being a method actor.’
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Blake, Justin and Colleen for comment.
Earlier this week, Justin spoke about the difficulties of portraying a domestic violence relationship on screen with CBS Mornings.
He admitted that ‘as a man,’ he came with ‘his own biases’ on the topic, but insisted he ‘made sure the film had a female gaze.’
‘As a man, I’m always going to come with my own biases. It’s one of the reasons I was afraid to direct this movie, let alone act in it,’ he said.
‘I wanted to make sure this film always had a female gaze and I was never putting myself into it.’
Social media users have been desperately trying to figure out what went down between the stars after sensing some tension between them in the weeks leading up to the highly-anticipated film’s release.
Blake and Justin didn’t pose for any pictures together at the New York premiere this week, despite playing the two main characters and love interests in the flick.
They branded Justin, who also served as director and producer of the film, as ‘borderline abusive’ on set, and said he ‘almost became the character’
Blake and Justin didn’t pose for any pictures together at the premiere this week, while she happily took photos with her other costars like Jenny Slate (left) and Brandon Sklenar (right)
Two days later, Blake attended a photo call in London for the film with some of the other stars – but Justin was mysteriously absent (pictured with Isabela Ferrer)
She happily took photos with her other costars like Jenny Slate and Brandon Sklenar, but not Justin, who was joined by his wife of 11 years, Emily Baldoni.
Two days later, Blake attended a photo call in London for the film with some of the other stars – but Justin was mysteriously absent.
In addition, the two haven’t done any press together in the weeks leading up to the film’s release.
Instead, Blake sat down for an interview with her costar, Brandon, last month; she and Brandon also participated in a promotional video with It Ends With Us stars Alex Neustaedter and Isabela Ferrer, but Justin had no part in it.
Eagle-eyed social media users also noticed that both Blake and author Colleen unfollowed Justin on Instagram recently.
To make matters more suspicious, actress Jenny completely dodged a question about Justin on the red carpet at the premiere on Tuesday evening.
‘What was it like having [Justin] be director but also a scene partner?’ a Deadline reporter asked the star.
In addition, the two haven’t done any press together in the weeks leading up to the film’s release. Instead, Blake sat down for an interview with her costar, Brandon, last month
She and Brandon also participated in a promotional video with It Ends With Us stars Isabela and Alex Neustaedter, but Justin had no part in it
Jenny further raised suspicion when she completely dodged a question about Justin on the red carpet at the premiere on Tuesday evening
‘I mean what an intense job to have to do so many things,’ she replied. ‘I found myself being like, “Wow, I just want to have one job at once”.
‘I’ve often felt that way, I really like writing and it’s special to be able to be a writer but I was looking around like, “Yeah I’m good with just acting.” I love it.’
Justin sat down on the Today show yesterday, and he appeared to brush off the feud rumors by gushing over Blake on air
Justin sat down on the Today show yesterday morning for an interview, and he appeared to brush off the feud rumors by gushing over Blake on air.
When asked about what it was like to work with the Gossip Girl alum, he had nothing but positive things to say.
‘I don’t know if you know how smart and creative she really is,’ he said.
‘She’s best known as an actress and of course she’s a fashion icon, but she’s so much more than that.
‘She is a dynamic creative – she had her hands in every part of this production and everything she touched, she made better.’
Blake recently confirmed her husband Ryan Reynolds, 44, whose new film Deadpool & Wolverine will go head-to-head with It Ends with Us at the box office this weekend, wrote a scene for the Colleen adaptation.
‘The iconic rooftop scene, my husband actually wrote it,’ she told E! News. ‘Nobody knows that but you now.
‘We help each other. He works on everything I do; I work on everything he does. So his wins, his celebrations are mine and mine are his.’
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