Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s Hollywood feud allegedly involved a smear campaign and ‘astroturfing’
For months, fans had noticed something was amiss between the film’s main stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, who also directed the movie.
For one thing, Lively’s husband, fellow actor Ryan Reynolds, blocked Baldoni on Instagram — the ultimate snub in 2024.
And it soon became apparent that Lively and Baldoni were not posing on red carpets together or doing joint interviews, despite being the movie’s leads.
But online speculation about a possible feud between the actors suddenly morphed into an internet pile-on, with TikTok, Reddit and X users blaming Lively for the drama surrounding the publicity tour.
The 37-year-old was slammed for encouraging movie goers to “grab your friends, wear your florals and head out to see” It Ends With Us — a film about a domestic violence survivor named Lily Bloom.
“Wear your florals? WTF? This isn’t another Barbie movie type film. So damn tone deaf. This is why we need Justin to do the marketing,” one Instagram user posted.
“Mean girl vibes, Justin deserves better,” said another.
Lively was also criticised for spruiking her new hair care line, discussing her red carpet looks, and claiming credit for the final edit of the movie.
Baldoni, meanwhile, was lauded online for raising awareness about domestic violence during the movie’s publicity campaign.
“If a Lily Bloom in real life can sit in this theatre, and make a different choice for herself than the one that was made for her, maybe she sees herself on that screen and chooses something different for herself,” he said.
A man in a pink suit stands before a sign reading ‘IT ENDS WITH US’
Justin Baldoni has denied Blake Lively’s accusations of coordinating a smear campaign against her. (Reuters: Caitlin Ochs)
Online, fans said Lively and her team had “bullied” Baldoni, and wrestled away creative control of the movie he directed, many using remarkably similar language in the comments.
“Justin Baldoni, the man that you are, you deserve better,” wrote one TikTok user.
“Justin Baldoni, the man that you are, still such a caring and compassionate person after everything that’s happened,” said another.
“Oh Justin Baldoni, the man that you are,” wrote a third, along with a heart and crying emoji.
Then old clips began to circulate online, in which social media users claimed Lively was being snippy or hostile to reporters during interviews.
“Is Blake Lively set to be CANCELLED? String of ‘hard to watch’ videos that have surfaced following ‘tone deaf’ Q&A,” the Daily Mail wrote in August.
But Lively has now alleged in a legal complaint filed against Baldoni that the wild events of the It Ends With US promo tour were not just the internet taking sides in a Hollywood feud.
The actress instead claims her co-star hired a crisis public relations expert to orchestrate a smear campaign against her.
“Millions of people (including many reporters and influencers) who saw these planted stories, social media posts, and other online content had no idea they were unwitting consumers of a crisis PR, astroturfing, and digital retaliation campaign created and funded by Mr Baldoni and [his production company] Wayfarer to hurt Ms Lively,” she said in her court filing.
“That is precisely the goal of an astroturfing campaign — to light the fire and continue to stoke conversations secretly, blurring the line between authentic and manufactured content, and creating viral public take-downs.”
A lawyer for Baldoni’s production company, Wayfarer, has vigorously denied the allegations, saying they are Lively’s “desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation”.
But the furore has raised questions about the role of astroturfing in manipulating public opinion.
A composite image of three women standing on red carpets
Meghan Markle, Amber Heard and Blake Lively have all alleged being victims of coordinated online smear campaigns designed to appear like organic, grassroots movements. (Reuters: Caitlin Ochs/Kevork Djansezian/Mario Anzuoni)
In a social media ecosystem already rife with misogyny, racism and aggression, experts say it’s remarkably easy to shape the narrative around a public figure.
Lively is not the only female celebrity to claim to have been the victim of online smear campaigns.
Actor Amber Heard says she was the target of the same PR firm hired by Baldoni when she was sued for defamation by her ex-husband Johnny Depp.
And the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, who once described herself as “most trolled person” in the world, appears to have also been the centre of a coordinated hate campaign of mysterious origins.
‘Astroturf’ is all around you
Astroturfing is a deceptive tactic to fake a grassroots movement with the aim of influencing public opinion. It predates the internet — and the practice is not just limited to Hollywood.
For example, in the 90s, the tobacco industry was facing increased restrictions and higher taxes as governments tried to dissuade people from smoking.
To combat this, Philip Morris hired a PR firm that created a group called the National Smokers Alliance, a collection of thousands of apparently disgruntled tobacco users willing to fight for their right to smoke.
But the group had quietly paid hundreds of people to recruit members in bars and bowling alleys across the United States, according to UK anti-smoking group, Tobacco Tactics.
The rise of social media has only made it easier for political organisations and companies to engage in astroturfing without detection.
Even social media influencers who spruik a product to their followers without disclosing the fact that they’ve been paid by a company to do so are technically engaging in astroturfing.
No matter the strategy of an astroturfing campaign, the goal is always the same: to make an illusion feel like reality.
At the heart of Lively’s dispute with Baldoni is a debate over whether the damage to her reputation this year was his fault or hers.
What we know for sure is that Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment during the production of It Ends With Us in 2023 — an allegation he denied.
