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Tensions on the set of It Ends With Us have spilled far beyond the soundstage, and now a former crew member is stepping into the spotlight with a perspective that echoes the film’s embattled director and star, Justin Baldoni.
A Crew Member Speaks Out
Talia Spencer, who worked as a storyboard artist on the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel, recently opened up during an interview with 60 Minutes Australia, sharing her observations from behind the scenes. While she didn’t provide concrete examples, her view was clear that she believed something went awry with Baldoni’s original creative direction and that Blake Lively, the film’s lead, may have had a hand in it.
Spencer further added that the shift in control felt evident. She described a sense of disillusionment, watching the project veer from its intended course. “I feel, like, maybe Blake [Lively] smelled his kindness — mistook it for weakness — and tried to take advantage and take power,” she said. “To see it be overtaken by this was definitely a little bit sad.”
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Justin Baldoni’s $400 Million Lawsuit
Spencer’s claims came with some serious backup, at least from Baldoni himself, who detailed his grievances in a $400 million lawsuit. The complaint filed in January states Lively “began inserting herself into the production process in intrusive ways well beyond the scope of her contractual entitlement.”
The suit also claims she asserted wardrobe control and pushed through script rewrites, including a crucial rooftop scene, under the circumstances Baldoni says felt like pressure tactics, especially with her husband Ryan Reynolds and their friend Taylor Swift reportedly present during a pivotal meeting.
“The message could not have been clearer. Baldoni was not just dealing with Lively. He was also facing Lively’s ‘dragons,’ two of the most influential and wealthy celebrities in the world, who were not afraid to make things very difficult for him,” Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman alleged.
Things then apparently took a darker turn when Baldoni claimed Lively filed a sexual harassment complaint only after allegedly threatening to withdraw from the set and withhold promotion for the film unless certain demands were met. However, Lively has pushed back, saying her actions were rooted in her experience and that Baldoni’s lawsuit is retaliatory and part of a broader campaign to silence her.
Talia Spencer’s View on Justin Baldoni
Spencer, meanwhile, had her own experience and it contradicts the accusations. She said she felt respected on set and found Baldoni to be one of the kindest directors she’s worked with.
“In my opinion, I find it very hard to believe the allegations against him and, considering his mission statement about the film, and him genuinely pitching that he was doing this film to help young women, I just find it hard to believe the allegations, to be honest,” the storyboard artist added.
She did acknowledge the sadness of watching a project with a meaningful message spiral into off-screen chaos, but she held out hope that the truth, whatever it may be, would surface. “It’d be nice if everybody could put their swords down, you know, and acknowledge their part in it and get along, but we don’t really live in that world, right?” Spencer concluded.
Spencer isn’t the only one revisiting their time in the film. Recently, actor Adam Mondschein also stepped forward, countering Lively’s claims about a scene they shot together.
“I’m not going to speculate as to Ms. Lively’s motivations for mentioning me in the complaint. Needless to say, my experience working with her is very different than the one she described in her lawsuit,” he told Page Six at the time. “Indeed, I was surprised to read her description of the scene.”
For more such stories, check out Hollywood News
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