Lively was criticized for appearing to use the film to promote her brands, but in fact it was a postponement of the premiere that coincided with a set release date.
The It ends with us the drama will not end so quickly.
In the recent controversy surrounding the romantic drama, star and producer Blake Lively has come under fire for apparently promoting personal brands such as her newly launched hair care line Blake Brown in the film. But a source said Weekly entertainment that the release of Blake Brown never coincided with the It ends with us Premiere.
It ends with us was originally scheduled for a Valentine’s Day premiere, which would have put a big gap between that release and the release of Blake Brown. However, the film was pushed back to June and then again to August, just days before Lively’s scheduled haircare debut.
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Blake Lively
This hair care chapter of the ongoing It ends with us Saga was fueled by an article in the New York Times which recorded the “many ways” in which “It ends with us is a brand building exercise for Lively.”
The actress introduced Blake Brown on Instagram while she was on the It ends with us Press Tour, which included a stop at a flower-filled photo backdrop (a nod to her character’s profession as a florist in the film) called “Betty Blooms,” a pop-up store Lively opened in New York that offers “fresh flowers and carbonated refreshments” courtesy of her beverage brands Betty Buzz and Betty Booze.
The Just also reported that “a promotional email” was sent out explaining “how to It ends with us-inspired cocktails with Betty Buzz.” The ingredient list for one recipe included Aviation Gin, a brand owned by Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds.
Related: Justin Baldoni explains why he made this massive change It ends with us
The fact that stars market their side hustles through their film projects and vice versa is nothing new. The reason why Lively’s ventures have drawn sharp criticism is twofold: Because some have not understood the sobering message at the heart of It ends with us stands in stark contrast to Lively’s seemingly flippant handling of the matter in the press and because the ongoing alleged “feud” between Lively and her director and co-star Justin Baldoni has put everything the two do under scrutiny.
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The various leaks from the set, the unconfirmed rumors and the signs of a rift between Baldoni and at least Lively and the author of the original, Colleen Hoover (Baldoni and Lively/Hoover have never done a single press event together) reached such a peak that Baldoni recently hired a crisis management team.
Part of the rift may be due to creative differences, as there are reports that there were two competing cuts of the film—one favoring Baldoni, the other Lively. Each of these cuts was reportedly shown to different audiences, but EW has learned that the version of the film released was not a specific cut, but a final cut that everyone involved had agreed upon.
Related: Blake Lively wore Britney Spears’ iconic 2002 Versace dress It ends with us Premiere: “It should be at the Smithsonian”
Baldoni made one significant change to the story from book to screen that Lively and Hoover reportedly didn’t like. Baldoni sought to introduce more subjectivity, and therefore doubt, into Lively’s character Lily’s experience of abuse at the hands of Baldoni’s Ryle. Baldoni told EW he wanted the film to “feel like a memoir with an unreliable narrator showing us what she experienced,” rather than a sobering string of facts about one woman’s struggle to break the cycle of domestic violence.
While Lively commented on the subject of her co-star and director in It ends with us Press tour, Baldoni praised his co-star to EW, and said, “Blake was involved in every aspect of the film… She was involved in everything, and she was a creative powerhouse and a wonderful collaborator.”
Whatever happened between Baldoni and Lively, it doesn’t hurt the film, which far exceeded all expectations and grossed over $100 million at the box office in its first week.
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.
