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Blake Lively ‘Put Aside Personality Differences’ With Anna Kendrick to Film ‘A Simple Favor 2’
Blake Lively is desperate to shake off her “most hated” tag and make amends where she can, leveraging her and Ryan Reynolds’ significant influence to secure projects and, if necessary, navigate their way out of difficulties.
“Blake has now had the biggest direct hit of her career with It Ends With Us but she’s not going to let herself be permanently painted as the villain every project she does going forward,” a source exclusively tells Life & Style. “In fact, she is pushing back against that strongly and making sure her real allies know just how much they are valued.”
Blake, 37, found herself at the center of feud rumors with her costar Justin Baldoni, sparked during the filming of It Ends With Us. Blake’s “mean girl” reputation continued to escalate after resurfaced interviews painted her as a cold person, making snarky remarks when a journalist attempted to congratulate her on her pregnancy.\
The Shallows actress appears to be leaning on fellow leading lady Anna Kendrick, her costar from the 2018 dark-comedy thriller A Simple Favor. The story follows Stephanie (Kendrick), a mommy blogger, who forms a friendship with the glamorous and enigmatic Emily (Lively), only for Emily to suddenly vanish under mysterious circumstances. Anna, 39, and Blake reportedly clashed on set, with the Pitch Perfect star playing up their onscreen animosity by saying things like, “She seemed nice – little did I know.”
However, the insider reveals that the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants actress and Twilight alum have “managed to put aside their personality differences” to work on A Simple Favor 2 — a project some in the press had deemed “impossible.”
“Sony is holding out hope that Blake and Justin Baldoni can come to some kind of understanding to get the It Ends With Us sequel off the ground in the next 18 months,” the source continues. “They’re doing everything they can to make that happen, while respecting Justin and Blake for the job they’ve already done.”
The source says Blake would return “for more movies if it’s a great business proposition,” noting that her “personality differences with Justin or anybody else” wouldn’t be a “deciding factor.”
“But ‘IEWU‘ is all about money, and it always has been,” the insider concludes.
Blake and Justin fueled rumors they were feuding when they didn’t pose for photos together at the film’s New York City premiere on August 6. Blake also avoided doing any press interviews with the Jane the Virgin alum, 40, despite participating in some alongside costar Brandon Sklenar.
Justin hinted that he had no interest in being part of the sequel, It Starts With Us, the follow-up novel to It Ends With Us. “I think there are better people for that one,” he told Entertainment Tonight on August 6. “I think Blake Lively’s ready to direct. That’s what I think.”
Sources later exclusively told Life & Style in September that Ryan, 47, was willing to “buy out” Justin’s stake in the franchise so Blake could “continue her role without having to” work with him.
“This is the biggest film Blake has ever made. Ryan wants to make sure she isn’t replaced in the sequel!” the source dished on September 15.
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