Blake Lively has been left ‘fearing’ for her career amid the ongoing It Ends With Us drama, and may end up taking ‘a step back’ to ‘reassess her future.’
In the lead-up to the movie’s release, rumors of an ongoing feud between the actress, 36, and her costar Justin Baldoni, 40, dominated headlines, resulting in the leads facing intense scrutiny online.
Blake, for her part, has been slammed for using her alcohol brand to promote the film, which focuses heavily on domestic abuse, and for the way she appeared to make light of serious questions about the themes during interviews.
Now, an insider has told DailyMail.com that the Gossip Girl alum is terrified that the immense backlash will impact her ability to land jobs in the future.
They said she believed this was going to be ‘her moment to shine,’ but is now worried that it may be the ‘end of her career.’
Blake Lively has been left ‘fearing’ for her career amid the ongoing It Ends With Us drama, and may end up taking ‘a step back’ to ‘reassess her future,’ a source has revealed
‘Blake is definitely saddened by the hate she is getting and is trying not to let it affect her but it is,’ they said.
‘She thought this was her moment to shine but is now looking at it like the end of her career. She’s fearing no one will want to work with her after this.
‘She really wants to continue producing and directing and acting but she knows she needs to take a step back for a minute to reassess the future.’
DailyMail.com has contacted Blake’s representatives for comment.
It Ends With Us, which is based on Colleen Hoover’s novel of the same name, follows Lily Bloom, played by Blake, who becomes embroiled in an abusive relationship with Ryle Kincaid, portrayed by Justin.
Rumors of a divide between the two stars first arose after fans noticed that they failed to do any press together leading up to the film’s release, and didn’t interact at the movie’s red carpet premiere in Los Angeles.
that Blake and Justin clashed over his allegedly ‘dismissive’ attitude to her ‘input’ while they were filming scenes that involved abuse.
The insider claimed that Justin only focused on ‘what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint’ and had a very ‘chauvinistic’ approach to the topic.
‘During scenes depicting abuse, Justin failed to consider Blake’s character’s perspective, instead focusing solely on what he believed was the abusive male viewpoint,’ they said.
‘His approach was very chauvinistic, creating a tense atmosphere on set.’
The source alleged that Justin was ‘borderline abusive’ on set, and said he ‘almost became the character.’
‘Justin almost became the character in the sense that some women on set felt he was borderline abusive to them and that he was unprofessional and unapologetic,’ they said.
‘Directing a film so serious and so important about domestic abuse without allowing the women to be included in this process is disturbing.’
Days later, TMZ reported that the problems between them allegedly arose after Blake felt ‘fat-shamed’ by Justin on set while they were preparing for a scene that saw him lift her off the ground.
Insiders told the website that Justin allegedly suffers from back problems and sought assistance from a trainer prior to the lifting scene.
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Social media users were quick to criticize them – particularly Blake, who hosted the interview – for partaking in the lighthearted questionnaire given the serious nature of the film.
Several hours later, Blake took to Instagram to share information about domestic violence, as well as some resources for her followers.
Amid the controversy, a journalist resurfaced an ‘uncomfortable’ interview that she had with Blake in 2016, which further increased the fury.
During the sit-down, the actress made a snarky comment about Norwegian reporter Kjersti Flaa’s ‘bump’ after she had congratulated a then-pregnant Blake on her impending arrival – but the journalist was not pregnant.
After the moment went viral, Kjersti, 51, told DailyMail.com exclusively that Blake’s response was especially hurtful because she cannot conceive.
‘[Her comment] left me almost paralyzed. To be honest it hurts because I obviously wasn’t pregnant and I could never get pregnant so to me that comment was like a bullet,’ she shared.
‘I didn’t know how to react. I felt very uncomfortable throughout the interview and all I wanted to do was leave and get out of there as fast as I could.
‘It made me feel like a complete failure. I kept going through the interview in my head afterwards trying to figure out what I had said or done to make them behave like that. It made no sense to me.’
Blake has also been bashed for repeatedly referring to transgender people as ‘trannies’ in old interviews, and for her alcohol brand Betty Booze’s involvement in the movie’s premiere.
The cocktail brand, started by the actress last year, provided drinks for the afterparty, and social media users were unamused.
Many were horrified that a film about domestic violence had teamed up with an alcohol company, with one person pointing out that the World Health Organization estimated that ‘roughly 55 per cent of domestic abuse perpetrators were drinking alcohol prior to assault.’