Blake Lively’s sexual harassment complaint against co-star Justin Baldoni, in which she has accused him of running a smear campaign, has revived drama related to the movie ‘It Ends With Us’. The controversy over the interview that Justin Baldoni gave almost three years ago has resurfaced, in which he had shared how he first came across porn and what it did to his life. In a July 2021 interview on Sarah Grynberg’s ‘A Life of Greatness’ podcast, Baldoni revealed he was introduced to porn when he was 10. “I was introduced to porn when I was 10 years old. Long before I ever, you know, could have an erection or even knew how I felt about anything,” he shared.
He added, “It was, you know, like any young boy who sees boobs for the first time; it’s exciting because our culture has shielded them from us because they’re sexualized. It’s cultural.”
Baldoni, 40 today, admitted that he developed a pretty “unhealthy” relationship with porn through the years, and one always used it to go hiding whenever things went badly in his life. “I trained my brain to deal with pain with the dopamine hit… But it doesn’t mean that I’m not using something in an unhealthy way,” he admitted. He further discussed how he relied on “images and videos of naked women when I was feeling necessarily bad about myself,” comparing the way Western culture sexualizes the female body to how other cultures view it. “You go to places like Africa and different tribes … and the breast is the breast,” he explained, criticizing how the American entertainment industry has “sexualised” women’s bodies. “We’ve sexualised this thing, so, of course, it becomes fascinating and interesting and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, boobs.’ And then, you know, hormones start raging,” he continued.
The resurfacing of these comments has reignited the drama surrounding ‘It Ends With Us’, following Lively’s allegations of Baldoni’s inappropriate behavior and the creation of a toxic workplace environment. According to documents filed on December 20, 2024, Baldoni was reportedly warned after an “all-hands” meeting, which involved Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds. The alleged warning told Baldoni to cease his display of “nude videos or pictures of women” to other co-stars and to “cease inappropriate comments in front of the cast and crew over the genitalia and sex scenes.”.
Lively’s lawsuit also includes claims against Baldoni trying to create a narrative of her reputation to defame her. Freedman Bryan, in defense of the case through Baldoni, said it was completely false, outrageous, and salacious; he further added that Lively used the lawsuit as an attempt to “fix” her own bad public image.
This is the continuation saga of months after the premiere of ‘It Ends With Us’ in August 2024, where rumors of a feud between the leading stars began circulating. Since then, Lively and Baldoni have not appeared together in any promotional material, interviews, or even at the film’s premiere.
