Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni recently starred in a film adaptation of “It Ends with Us” by Colleen Hover. The movie portrays Lily Bloom, played by Lively, and Ryle Kincaid, played by Baldoni, and their abusive relationship. Throughout the film, viewers learn of Lily’s past growing up in an abusive home, as she begins reverting to old patterns by entering an abusive relationship.

Following the movie’s release, a controversy surrounding the co-stars became public though most of the cast unfollowed Baldoni on Instagram. It was later revealed that Lively felt body shamed by Baldoni asking his on-set trainer about her weight. After information on Baldoni’s back issues was revealed, Lively was condemned for being overly sensitive. “Blake Lively is taking this body shaming thing too far, Justin Baldoni was just trying to properly prepare to lift Blake for a scene so he wouldn’t further injure his back,” Madeleine Stastny ‘26 commented.

Due to Lively’s role in the movie, she has been expected to be an advocate for domestic violence. Regardless, she has not stepped up to her role and has, instead, focused her energy on the launch of her hair care line– Blake Brown. Furthermore, fans were agitated that Lively did not discuss the movie’s portrayal of Lily’s struggles with abusive relationships. “It seems all Blake Lively talks about during interviews is her haircare line and Ryan Renolds’[her husband’s] new movie,” Mary Scheeringa 26’ said. Additionally, when Lively was asked how she would talk to friends who relate to her character, she responded sarcastically. A social media backlash ensued, showing clips of her making insensitive remarks on TikTok and other social media platforms. For instance, during an interview in 2016, Lively told the interviewer that she liked her “bump,”. However, not only was the lady not pregnant, but she was also infertile.

In response to the backlash, Lively posted an Instagram story about domestic violence statistics and a link to a hotline. While some people think she only did this as a response to the criticism she received, other supporters of Lively have claimed that people are being too critical of her in the way she goes about promoting the movie.

The media controversy surrounding the movie and its co-stars has proved to be very helpful in promoting the film. As they say in the business, “Any publicity is good publicity”. It is disappointing that Blake Lively is not advocating for victims of domestic violence given her role in this movie. However, the public’s response is disproportionate to her lack of advocacy.