Gayle King fueled the ongoing Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni drama on Monday as she asked their It Ends With Us co-star an extremely awkward question.

King, 70, put Brandon Sklenar, 34, who played Atlas, the love interest of Lively’s Lily Bloom in the film, on the spot on CBS Mornings as she asked: ‘Are you Team Blake or Team Justin?’

Sklenar, who was appearing to plug the second season of Yellowstone prequel, 1923, let out an awkward laugh and said: ‘I’m Team It Ends With Us.’

Asked how he was handling the duelling lawsuits between Lively, 37, and Baldoni, 41, Sklenar said: ‘I just want people to remember why we made the movie in the first place and what it stands for, and just keeping the focus on that.

‘I have someone very close to me who’s gone through what [Lively’s character Lily is] going through for a long time and I’ve been on the front lines helping her navigate that space, so that movie meant a lot to me and it means a lot to her.

‘It was one of the reasons that me doing that movie gave her the strength to change her life.

Gayle King fueled the ongoing Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni drama on Monday as she asked their It Ends With Us co-star Brandon Sklenar an extremely awkward question

+20
View gallery

Sklenar is seen as Atlas with Lively as Lily Bloom in the film

‘It’s unfortunate that things get taken away from what the ethos of that thing is and it gets convoluted.’

Lively has accused Baldoni of sexual harassment in a lawsuit; while Baldoni accused Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and publicist Leslie Sloane of defamation and extortion in a $400 million suit.

Baldoni has denied the allegations brought about by Lively, while Lively, Reynolds and Sloane have denied the accusations made in litigation by Baldoni.

Baldoni’s team has released a website which includes private communications such as text messages that were included in court filings detailing his interactions with the Hollywood power couple over the making of romantic drama.

He claimed in court filings they made efforts made to usurp and undermine his input as the director of It Ends with Us.

After Prime Video released a promotional post for Another Simple Favor February 5 – which Lively stars in opposite Anna Kendrick – a number of commenters implicated that Lively might have tried to assert her influence over director Paul Feig, 62, over that movie, leading the filmmaker to respond to the speculation.

Dailymail.com has reached out to Feig and his rep for further comment on this story.

Amid Baldoni’s claims that Lively and her inner circle used their considerable clout to commandeer changes to the script – even enlisting Swift to lean on him at one point – and re-cut the motion picture, a user asked in the comment section, ‘Is it Paul Feig’s cut or Blake’s cut?’

Sklenar, who was appearing to plug the second season of Yellowstone prequel, 1923, let out an awkward laugh and said: ‘ I’m Team It Ends With Us’

+20
View gallery

Asked how he was handling the duelling lawsuits between Lively, 37, and Baldoni, 41, Sklenar said: ‘I just want people to remember why we made the movie in the first place and what it stands for, and just keeping the focus on that’

+20
View gallery

Lively has accused Baldoni of sexual harassment in a lawsuit; while Baldoni accused Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and publicist Leslie Sloane of defamation and extortion in a $400 million suit

+20
View gallery

Lively appeared to be in good spirits amid her return to the limelight

+20
View gallery

Lively made her first red carpet appearance in more than two months amid the IEWU scandal

Feig – whose other cinematic credits include 2011’s Bridesmaids, 2016’s Ghostbusters and 2024’s Jackpot! – made clear he had full creative control over the film, replying, ‘It’s my cut. There is no other cut … just wanted to clear that up.’

Feig in his reply heaped massive praise on Lively, who he previously worked with on 2018’s A Simple Favor.

‘Blake has been nothing but supportive and a dream to work with,’ said the Emmy-nominated director, who has directed shows such as Arrested Development, The Office and Nurse Jackie. ‘She is the best and an amazing collaborator and I’m her biggest fan.’

A number of the director’s fans criticized his defense of Lively, amid the allegations Baldoni made in court filings and on the website.

‘Paul, I know you’re gonna wanna shake off these comments as coming from a bunch of loons, but Blake and Ryan really did use their star power to bulldoze Justin,’ said one user. ‘It makes me really sad, and I hope you remember when you were starting off in this business.’

+20
View gallery

Lively looked stylish in a silver gown with her blonde tresses down in her comeback outing

+20
View gallery

The Hollywood power couple has been tied in litigation with Baldoni over IEWU

+20
View gallery

The couple, who have been dealing with legal problems in recent months, disregarded the issues Sunday for a glam night out in the Big Apple

+20
View gallery

The last time Lively stepped on a red carpet came on December 11 at the 2024 Beauty Inc Awards in New York City

Others told Feig that his stellar reputation as a feted industry veteran insulated him from the strong-arming and meddling Lively allegedly subjected Baldoni to in regard to It Ends with Us’s screenplay, wardrobe and editing.

‘You’ve been in the directing game for so long, so of course Blake isn’t going to attempt to step on your toes,’ said one user. ‘She just goes for the directors that are starting off and tries to use her husband to bully them and take over.

‘She’d never have the balls to do that to someone like you so of course she’s “amazing, great, kind, etc.”‘

Said another user: ‘You’re making things worse by defending Blake, you know. This just reaffirms that Blake treats powerful directors like you nicely and targets those she considers less than.’

Another echoed, ‘You’re probably a good guy but you’re extremely lucky that you got your cut [because] Blake knew not to bully you and put you in the basement. She thought highly of you [because] you’re not a nobody.

‘But good luck with this show. It’s dead in the water.’

Multiple commenters referenced on Feig’s post Baldoni’s claim made in court filings that Lively arranged for his presence to be minimized at the It Ends with Us premiere.

‘Be careful you might end up in the basement in the premiere,’ one user said, while another responded, ‘Be careful Paul she may put you in the basement come premiere day.’

Feig put up his own separate post Tuesday amid news the motion picture, which was written by Jessica Sharzer, will be kicking off next month’s SXSW Film and TV Festival in Austin, Texas.

+20
View gallery

Another Simple Favor director Paul Feig said of LIvely, ‘Blake has been nothing but supportive and a dream to work with. She is the best and an amazing collaborator and I’m her biggest fan. Just wanted to clear that up.’ Pictured in 2018 in NYC

+20
View gallery

After Prime Video released a promotional post for Another Simple Favor February 5, a number of commenters implicated that Lively might have tried to assert her influence over Feig over that movie, the filmmaker responded to the speculation

Feig put up his own separate post promoting the motion picture last week

Instagram commenters told Feig that his stellar reputation as a feted industry veteran insulated him from the strong-arming and meddling Lively allegedly subjected Baldoni to

‘I have a simple favor to ask you… can you save the date?’ Feig said in the post. ‘#AnotherSimpleFavor from @AmazonMGMStudios is premiering as the opening night film at @SXSW in Austin on March 7th. And then we hit @PrimeVideo on May 1st. Stay tuned for more details and much more fun!’

Prime Video’s post read, ‘We have Another Simple Favor to ask you… can you save the date? Opening Night at SXSW. May 1 on Prime Video.’

Lively stars in alongside Kendrick in the sequel to their 2018 film A Simple Flavor, as they reprise their respective roles of Emily Nelson and Stephanie Smothers.

A logline from producers said that the sequel ‘follows Stephanie Smothers and Emily Nelson as they head to the beautiful island of Capri, Italy , for Emily’s extravagant wedding to a rich Italian businessman.’

The film’s cast is rounded out by Allison Janney, Michele Morrone, Elizabeth Perkins, Henry Golding and Andrew Rannells.

People flooded both the Prime Video post and Feig’s with comments referring to allegations made by Baldoni in court filings and an adjacent website.

‘Did Ryan rewrite a scene?’ one user asked, another wisecracked, ‘Is the poster promoting Ryan’s gin as well?’ while another person asked, ‘Is this the real version or did Blake edit it?’

Others referenced a text exchange in Baldoni’s court filing in which Lively likened Reynolds and Swift to Game of Thrones dragons, with one person writing, ‘How involved are Blake’s dragons on this one?’ while another said, ‘Will there be dragons?’

+20
View gallery

A number of comments made on the promotional post questioned if Lively or Reynolds sought to undermine Feig during the making of Another Simple Favor

Some acknowledged they were just commenting amid the spectacle of the situation, as one user said they ‘came straight to the comments’ amid the controversies, while another asked, ‘Who came for just the comments?’

Another person remarked, ‘This is the worst timing for this promotion lmfao,’ while one predicted, ‘They will be turning off the comments soon.’

Baldoni’s team previously said that the communications shared in court filings on the website – which already has fans talking – makes things clear about the motives of both parties, marking the latest chapter in the feud between the It Ends with Us headliners.

The website, which is live online at thelawsuitinfo.com, comes amid a spate of high-profile litigation between the collaborators on the film, which was a hit at the box office last August.

The site went live days prior to the first hearing Monday, which was previously pushed up from an initial date of February 12, ahead of a trial with a starting date of March 9, 2026 in the case.

Lively filed an 80-page civil rights complaint with the California Civil Rights Department against Baldoni December 20, before officially filing a federal lawsuit on December 31.

+20
View gallery

Lively has accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her in multiple ways during the making of the movie It Ends With Us

+20
View gallery

The motion picture earned $148 million in domestic box office, and $350 million globally

Lively in December sued Baldoni amid claims of sexual harassment during production of the motion picture. In her lawsuit, the Gossip Girl alum accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her in multiple ways – including body shaming her – and orchestrating a smear campaign against her to damage her reputation.

Baldoni and his reps have said in response to the lawsuit that Lively twisted the meaning of text messages and mislead the public about their interactions while making the motion picture.

In her lawsuit, Lively named a number of Baldoni’s collaborators, including his company Wayfarer Studios, the studio’s CEO and financial backer, and PR personnel Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel.

‘I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted,’ Lively told The New York Times the day after she filed the complaint.

Baldoni subsequently sued the newspaper for $250 million in a defamation claim over a December 21 story titled ‘”We Can Bury Anyone”: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine;’ the newspaper has denied the allegations.

+20
View gallery

Lively in December sued Baldoni amid claims of sexual harassment during production of the motion picture, which was a hit when it arrived in theaters in August

+20
View gallery

Baldoni on January 16 filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane, alleging defamation and extortion. Pictured at the IEWU premiere in August in NYC

Baldoni on January 16 filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane, alleging defamation and extortion. Baldoni told the court the trio had concocted ‘false accusations of sexual harassment’ against him.

Since Lively’s complaint was filed, Baldoni has faced a number of professional consequences, including a lawsuit from a former publicist; and being dropped by the agency WME, which also reps Lively and Reynolds.

WME has denied claims that Lively and Reynolds leaned on them to release Baldoni from their client roster, according to Variety.

Lawyers for both parties were in accordance with a plan to compound both federal cases filed into one moving forward. All parties to the litigations have denied the allegations against them.

It Ends with Us, which also starred Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Brandon Sklenar and Kevin McKidd, arrived in theaters August 9 and was a hit with audiences. The film, adapted from the 2016 Colleen Hoover novel, earned $148 million in domestic box office, and $350 million globally, according to Box Office Mojo.

Lively broke out with the 2005 movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants opposite Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel and America Ferrera. That led to her high-profile role on the TV show Gossip Girl, which she starred on from 2007-2012, playing lead character Serena van der Woodsen.

She has also appeared in movies such as 2010’s The Town, 2016’s The Shallows, 2018’s A Simple Favor and 2020’s The Rhythm Section.

Prior to It Ends with Us, Baldoni was best known for playing the role of Rafael Solano on the TV show Jane the Virgin from 2014–2019. He also has directed films including 2019’s Five Feet Apart and 2020’s Clouds, and penned the 2021 book Man Enough, which tackled misconceptions of contemporary masculinity.