Blake Lively’s ‘It Ends With Us’ costar Brandon Sklenar speaks out on Justin Baldoni allegations
Blake Lively’s “It Ends With Us” costar Brandon Sklenar has spoken out about allegations Lively leveled against Justin Baldoni in a new lawsuit.
Baldoni, 40, who directed and starred in the film adaptation of the bestselling Colleen Hoover novel alongside Lively and Sklenar, was accused by the actress of sexual harassment and orchestrating “a coordinated effort” to destroy her reputation following the movie’s release.
Sklenar, 34, broke his silence on the controversy and voiced his support for Lively, 37, in an Instagram story he shared on Monday, posting a link to a New York Times article which has the complete legal filing Lively submitted.
“For the love of god read this,” wrote the actor, who played Lively’s childhood sweetheart Atlas Corrigan in “It Ends With Us.”
Sklenar also tagged Lively’s Instagram account and added a heart emoji next to her handle.
The “1923” star joined another prominent figure in the “It Ends With Us” firmament who has publicly supported Lively.
Hoover, 45, who in addition to having penned the source material was an executive producer on the movie, backed the actress in an Instagram story on Saturday.
“You have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met,” she captioned a photo of her hugging the star.
“Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt.”
Other A-listers have rushed to Lively’s side, including Gwyneth Paltrow, her “A Simple Favor” director Paul Feig and her costars from “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,” Amber Tamblyn, America Ferrera and Alexis Bledel.
Centered on domestic abuse, “It Ends With Us” was a surprise box office hit this past summer, raking in over $350 million globally to date.
Many have speculated that the film’s success was spurred at least in part due to what was then just a rumored feud between Lively and Baldoni, as the pair refused to appear together while promoting the movie.
Lively was even labeled by some as a “mean girl” after a journalist’s old interview with the star gained traction on social media.
According to Lively’s lawsuit, Baldoni hired PR crisis manager Melissa Nathan — who worked with Johnny Depp during his defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard — to help him “destroy” Lively’s reputation.
The mom of four included copies of text messages that she alleges prove Baldoni, Nathan and others created a “retaliatory social manipulation campaign” against her after she spoke up about Baldoni’s on-set behavior during the production of “It Ends With Us,” which she viewed as inappropriate.
Baldoni has denied all the accusations made against him in the suit.
“It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions,” Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, previously told The Post.
“These claims are completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media,” Freedman added.
