Brandon Sklenar Addresses Blake Lively & Justin Baldoni Feud Rumors — Again

As feud rumors between It Ends With Us stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni keep growing, the cast is starting to give their thoughts. In a new interview with Access Hollywood on Sept. 5, their co-star Brandon Sklenar addressed the feud rumors for a second time, and made it clear that he’s tired of talking about it.

“It just seems silly to me,” he said. “It’s kind of defeating the whole purpose of the thing to spread any negativity. It’s an important film for so many women and for so many survivors of domestic abuse. That’s what it’s all about, is making people feel heard and strong and loved. So to project anything but that seems counterintuitive.”

A few weeks prior, Sklenar posted a statement on Instagram that addressed the feud speculation without denying that clashes occurred. “What may or may not have happened behind the scenes does not and hopefully should not detract from what our intentions were in making this film,” he wrote. “It’s been disheartening to see the amount of negativity being projected online.

He also came to the defense of Lively and It Ends With Us author Colleen Hoover after they got criticized for rarely speaking about domestic violence — a significant aspect of the film — during the press tour.

“Vilifying the women who put so much of their heart and soul into making this film because they believe so strongly in its message seems counterproductive and detracts from what this film is about. It is, in fact, the opposite of the point,” he wrote. “There isn’t a single person involved in the making of this film that was not aware of the responsibility we had in making this.”

Speaking to Access Hollywood, Sklenar reflected on releasing that statement. “I put that out and I was like, ‘See how this goes,’” he said. “I appreciate those people that appreciated it.”

Blake And Justin’s Reported Feud

The mystery behind Lively and Baldoni’s reported feud still hasn’t been solved. It all started when TikTokers noticed the two never interacted during the press tour. Hoover and the rest of the cast only made appearances with Lively and didn’t pose with Baldoni at the New York premiere on Aug. 5.

While they have never directly confirmed a feud, Baldoni acknowledged that there was “friction” on set in an interview with Elle, while Lively spoke about a creative disagreement.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Lively, an executive producer, and Baldoni, the film’s director, clashed during post-production. This resulted in Lively commissioning her own edit of the movie, which is reportedly the one that hit theaters.

However, in an Aug. 29 report from Rolling Stone, three crew members stated that their tension was “visible” on set, with Lively reportedly not meshing with Baldoni’s filmmaking style. But they all think the fan speculation was exaggerated. “I don’t think they hate each other. But I don’t think they would work together again,” one said.