Blake Lively is going full steam ahead with the publicity tour for Another Simple Favor, the follow-up to her 2018 dark comedy thriller A Simple Favor. But the dark clouds of the It Ends With Us scandal remain, particularly since rumors of a feud with co-star Anna Kendrick continue — at least until the celebrity trial in March 2026.
While Lively has largely maintained silence on the legal turmoil involving actor-director Justin Baldoni, her recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers offered a glimpse into her perspective. Though she refrained from diving into specifics, Blake opened up about the emotional and mental toll of the past year. “It’s no surprise I’ve had a pretty intense year,” she admitted. When host Seth Meyers invited her to say what she can, Blake looked around and thought, “I see so many women surrounding me, fearful to speak — particularly now — fearful to tell their stories. And fear is by design. It’s what silences us.”
She recognized her own comparative privilege in being able to speak up when many others cannot. “But I do also recognize that a lot of people don’t get the opportunity to speak,” Blake said. Discussing the reason she has taken such staunch legal action, she continued, “It’s the women that have had access to use their voice that have kept me tough and assisted me in my faith and my crusade for the world to become safer for females and girls.”
Blake and Justin worked together earlier on It Ends With Us (2024), a movie based on Colleen Hoover’s best-selling novel. After the release of the film, Blake sued Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, his company, for sexual harassment and a coordinated smear campaign. Baldoni denied the allegations and retaliated with a $400 million counterclaim against Blake, her husband Ryan Reynolds, their long-time publicist Leslie Sloane, and her PR agency, Vision PR, Inc., for defamation, civil extortion, and other charges.
The case is headed to trial in March 2026.
