Today in What’s The Tea news, there appears to be some kind of drama happening on the It Ends With Us press tour. I say “appears” and “some kind” because no one really knows what’s happening, except that director/star Justin Baldoni seems isolated on the press tour, as in, he’s not posing on red carpets with anyone, he’s not doing group interviews, he’s not even appearing at the same screenings as Blake Lively and the rest of the cast. 

 

Also, there was a mass unfollowing on Instagram between Baldoni, Blake, and everyone else. Here is TikTokker @ClaireNotDanes to break it down:

@clairenotdanes

#greenscreen like what in the world is going on?? #blakelively #itendswithus #colleenhoover #booktok #justinbaldoni #film #entertainment #coho #blake #lively #ryanreynolds

♬ original sound - claire miles 🎙️🎥🍿
 

Further, Baldoni isn’t mentioned even once in Blake’s recent Vogue profile. Colleen Hoover, author of the book the film is based on, is interviewed, but the director of said adaptation can’t provide even one quote via email? And then there’s the separate screenings thing. On August 5, Baldoni was at a screening and Q&A held in Pleasantville, New York. On the same day, Blake was at a screening in NYC proper (in floral fake chaps, girl…). 

 

In and of itself, sending different members of the cast to different screenings doesn’t ring any alarm bells. That happens, especially with larger ensembles when you have more people you can spread around at different events. It’s the aloneness that gets me. Justin Baldoni is the most alone man, he is in a movie that has at least four other actors on the press trail, plus the book’s author, and not ONE of them can make him less alone. Also, he co-hosts The Man Enough podcast with Liz Plank, but they haven’t posted a new episode in nearly two months, and more suspiciously, Plank was at the premiere of It Ends With Us and didn’t pose with Baldoni at all. Also also, Jenny Slate took a question about what it was like to work with Justin Baldoni and tap danced so hard around his name she sprained a metaphorical ankle:

 

No shade on Jenny, she is CLEARLY trying not to talk about that man. But WHY? WHAT HAPPENED?? Baldoni has no problem talking about Blake, but none of these women want his name in their mouths this week, and we are noticing it! 

It’s giving Don’t Worry Darling and that unhinged press tour, but at least in that case, we had some idea of what was fueling the public spectacle. Exact events were never confirmed, but we knew there was a falling out between Olivia Wilde and Florence Pugh. We could at least see the shape of the fire behind all the smoke. In this case, though, there is only smoke. There are only Instagram receipts and a lack of togetherness, and NO sense of what is causing it. I don’t buy the theory that Baldoni is mad at Ryan Reynolds’ press takeover, simply because the Insta unfollowing pre-dates this week. This appears to have started, publicly at least, a couple months ago.

 

So it’s time for our favorite game: coincidence or conspiracy? Is it all a coincidence, a quirk of timing that no one from the film is doing press with Justin Baldoni or will even say his name aloud? Or is there a conspiracy? And if there is, what is it??? Let us know what you think at The Squawk. (app link here)

Attached - Justin at CBS Mornings in New York yesterday and Blake at the photo call for It Ends With Us with Isabela Ferrer today in London.