Brandon Sklenar is breaking his silence on the alleged behind-the-scenes drama with his It Ends With Us costars.
“I wanted to take a minute and address all this stuff swirling online,” Sklenar, 34, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, August 20. “Colleen [Hoover] and the women of this cast stand for hope, perseverance, and for women choosing a better life for themselves. 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.”
He continued, “It is, in fact, the opposite of the point. 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. It’s been disheartening to see the amount of negativity being projected online.”
Sklenar shared that “someone very close” to him has been “struggling with a relationship that mirrored Lilly’s [sic] closely.” (In the film, Blake Lively’s character, Lily, is in an abusive relationship with Justin Baldoni’s Ryle.)
“I feel a responsibility to bring this to life and help spread that message further,” he wrote. “Prior to my involvement in this film, she had not heard of the book. It was only then that she read it. She credits Colleen’s book and subsequently this film with saving her life.”
Sklenar noted that “there isn’t a single person involved in the making of this film” that wasn’t “aware of the responsibility we had in making this.”
“A responsibility to all the women who have experienced generational trauma — domestic abuse — or struggle with looking in the mirror and loving who they see,” he continued. “This movie is a harsh reality check for the men who need to get their s–t together and take responsibility for themselves and their actions.”
Sklenar added that It Ends With Us is “meant to inspire” as well as “validate and recognize” and “instill hope” while building “courage” and helping “people feel less alone.”
“Ultimately it’s meant to spread love and awareness,” he wrote. “It is not meant to once again, make the women the ‘bad guy,’ let’s move beyond that together.”
He concluded: “All I ask is that before you spread hate on the internet, ask yourself who its helping. Ask yourself if your opinions are based in any fact. Or if you simply want to be part of something. Let’s be part of something better together. A part of a new story being written for women and all people everywhere.”
Lively, 36, and Baldoni, 40, have been making headlines for their alleged rift, with some fans thinking the 1923 star is on Lively’s side as he’s been present in press interviews with her (others point out that he doesn’t always look thrilled with her answers, especially when asked about the domestic violence storyline). Earlier this month, Us Weekly learned that Baldoni — who has not been part of any of the group interviews — hired crisis PR veteran Melissa Nathan.
While filming the movie based on Hoover’s 2016 book of the same name, Lively and Baldoni had “creative differences,” a source exclusively told Us.
“There were two camps on the film — team Blake and team Justin,” the insider said earlier this month. “This creative struggle set the tone for the negative experience behind the scenes and grew into them not speaking anymore.”
Lively, Baldoni and their other costars have yet to address the drama publicly.
