Blake Lively sent a 4-and-a-half-minute voice memo to Justin Baldoni before filming It Ends with Us, asking if he could move up the shooting dates. The message reveals Lively’s overwhelming schedule and her hope that Baldoni, who is both the director and her co-star, might accommodate a change to ease her commitments. This request reflects the challenges she faced balancing multiple projects and personal responsibilities.
Details of Lively’s Overloaded Professional Commitments
In the message, Lively explains to Baldoni that she is juggling more than she anticipated, with her time split between filming It Ends with Us and another movie titled Proxy. Directed by Kornél Mundruczó, Proxy is a science fiction film Lively was scheduled to shoot first. She hoped the Proxy production could be delayed to give her more breathing room before beginning It Ends with Us.
Besides her work commitments, Lively mentions her family plans with husband Ryan Reynolds. They had travel arrangements planned for early June, which conflicted with the original filming timetable for It Ends with Us. The tight scheduling added further stress to her situation.
Lively Appeals to Baldoni as a Friend to Ease Scheduling Strain
In her voice message, Blake clearly frames her request as a personal favor rather than a demand. She says,
None of it’s your problem, that’s why I’m talking to you as a friend at this point more than anything.
Even while urging a possible shift, Lively emphasizes that she respects Baldoni’s decision either way and feels no pressure for him to change the schedule.
Context of the Memo Amid Later Allegations
The voice memo was recorded months before production began, prior to serious allegations from Lively accusing Baldoni of sexual harassment and bullying on set. This audio does not conflict with those claims; instead, it highlights how their relationship has significantly deteriorated since the recording. A source close to Lively told TMZ that the message was a respectful request made to Baldoni, who represented both the director and the studio, and not an order.
It remains unclear whether Justin Baldoni agreed to adjust the filming schedule as Lively hoped.
Implications for the Project and Future Relations
This glimpse into the early communication between Lively and Baldoni reveals the pressures that can mount behind the scenes in film production, especially when actors carry heavy workloads and personal obligations. The shift from friendly collegiality to serious allegations also underscores the fragility of professional relationships in the industry. How the scheduling request and later conflicts impacted the production timeline or working environment is yet to be fully disclosed, but the situation likely caused significant strain for everyone involved.
