This summer, the first of what’s slated to be romance author Colleen Hoover’s several upcoming movie adaptions, “It End With Us,” was marred by controversy. Blake Lively, who played the film’s protagonist, Lily Bloom, was lambasted for the way she handled herself on the red carpet, on social media and in news interviews.
The consensus, especially online, was that Lively neglected to treat the film’s focus, domestic violence, with the gravity it deserved. She was also taken to task for the way she peddled her hair care and alcohol businesses in conjunction with promoting the movie. When Lively and Justin Baldoni, who directed, produced and also starred in the film, attended very few press events together, speculation swirled that the two where creatively and personally at odds. Lively’s reputation was slammed, seemingly irreparably. Baldoni’s star, on the other hand, rose.
In the 80-page document, which includes screenshots of text messages and emails, Lively alleges that Baldoni and his team orchestrated a smear campaign to destroy her reputation.
Earlier this month, Lively filed a legal complaint with the California Civil Rights Department against Baldoni, his film studio, Wayfarer Studios, Wayfarer Studios CEO Jamey Heath, Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel and others. In the 80-page document, which includes screenshots of text messages and emails, Lively alleges that Baldoni and his team orchestrated a smear campaign to destroy her reputation. The legal complaint also details numerous alleged instances of sexual harassment that occurred while filming “It Ends With Us.”
An attorney representing Baldoni denied the allegations, calling them “completely false, outrageous and intentionally salacious.”
There’s much to be said about the lack of protections for women, regardless of stature and resources, in a society that spends so much time disparaging and mistreating them. But more than anything else, this new chapter in the “It Ends With Us” controversy forces us to confront the uneasy relationship between reality and what we consume via pop culture and social media.
Lively’s complaint adds alarming and painful context to what was widely speculated about this summer, including by me. Lively alleges in her complaint that Baldoni both sexualized and criticized her appearance. She alleges that at one point Baldoni pressured her to remove her coat in front of members of the crew and background actors to reveal a low-cut dress she was wearing to easily breastfeed her infant daughter. (It’s worth saying anyone is entitled to wear a low-cut dress without providing a reason.) She also alleges that Baldoni contacted Lively’s fitness trainer, without her consent or awareness, and implied he wanted her to lose weight in just two weeks.
The complaint’s allegations feel especially jarring because Baldoni has positioned himself as a feminist ally throughout his career. His 2017 TED Talk, book and podcast, all titled “Man Enough,” explore problematic notions of traditional masculinity and how they “show up in relationships, body image, privilege, fatherhood, sex, success, mental health and so much more.” Earlier this month, Baldoni was honored by Vital Voices, a nonprofit organization that works to support women in leadership, for his perceived solidarity. His award was rescinded after Lively’s legal complaint, but his Instagram post celebrating the recognition is still up. In it, Baldoni writes, “Looking at the landscape of our world, it’s hard to accept an award when it’s so evident that there is still so much more work to do.”
The questions at the center of this maelstrom are difficult to answer and depressing to consider. Was Baldoni’s entire media persona as a feminist ally and thought leader a lie? Whatever the truth might be, Baldoni has now been spun into a figurehead for an insidious stratum of men who use feminism and popular progressive ideology to win trust and gain access to women, publicly and privately. It isn’t necessarily surprising that the hypercalculated tactics alleged in Lively’s complaint exist in Hollywood, but it is surprising to see them laid out so clearly and so obviously for the world to see, should the allegations from Lively and others be proven true. Between TikTokers, bloggers, journalists and the unpredictable power of virality, public opinion is a fickle currency celebrities must earn for success. Look no further than the onslaught of support Lively is now receiving, just months after so many were so quick to dismiss and disavow her. Very few of us are free from the chains of social media. It is now impossible to divorce internet culture from contemporary culture, with a proliferation of memes, TikToks, hot takes and viral moments that seep into the analog world and make real, lasting cultural change. Perhaps what is so deeply uncomfortable about what Lively has been subject to — and what I’m sure hundreds of other public-facing people have experienced as well — is that it shatters the illusion that that our culture is organic and real. Connections on social media, posts, AMAs, Instagram Lives are part of the modern game of fame. They can — and are — manipulated. If nothing else, the screenshots in Lively’s legal complaint demonstrate that. “This is your reminder that social media isn’t real” has become a common refrain in self-effacing TikTok videos. We know intellectually that that is true, but it is easy to forget when your entire day is punctuated by scrolling, reading and formulating your own hot takes. It can feel impossible, in this day and age, to break the chains of social media and the outsize role it plays in our perception of reality, decency and justice. But perhaps these fleeting sober moments where we get to peek behind the curtain can help us loosen the shackles.
Hannah Holland
Hannah Holland is a producer for MSNBC's "Velshi" and editor for the "Velshi Banned Book Club." She writes for MSNBC Daily. 
