Ryan Reynolds’ Private Texts Resurface, Showing How Hard He Pushed Sony to Defend Blake Lively During the ‘It Ends With Us’ Backlash
When ‘It Ends With Us’ arrived in theaters in August 2024, it was meant to be a straightforward adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel. Instead, the film’s promotional run became a lightning rod. Online criticism of how its stars were marketing a story about domestic violence quickly overshadowed the release.
Blake Lively was at the center of much of that criticism. Behind the scenes, tensions with her co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, were building, and they would soon turn into one of Hollywood’s most closely watched legal fights. Now, newly surfaced messages are offering a closer look at how her husband responded as the backlash grew.
Page Six has obtained text messages from Ryan Reynolds that appear in court documents filed in November 2025 connected to the Lively and Baldoni case. According to the report, the messages show Reynolds pressing Sony Pictures to publicly defend his wife while she faced intense online backlash. The texts date to August 2024.
In an exchange with a talent agent, Reynolds reportedly criticized Sony for not backing Lively. He also said he wanted Baldoni to see that an entire studio knew what he was doing. A source close to Reynolds told Page Six that it is no secret he was trying to protect his wife, who they said was being targeted by a crisis PR team hired by Baldoni.
Other unsealed messages have shown similar frustration. In an August 10, 2024 text to Hoover, Reynolds sharply criticized Baldoni, questioned why the narrative focused on a woman as the problem, and predicted that people would soon come forward. In an August 9 message to his agent, Warren Zavala, he used dismissive language about Baldoni while celebrating the film’s box office success.
Earlier unsealed filings showed Reynolds using harsh words about Baldoni in messages to a WME executive in July 2024. At the time, a spokesperson for Reynolds said he got involved because he was supporting his wife. Reynolds’ attorney also said the messages do not support Lively’s claims as a matter of law.
The messages arrive after a long and bitter dispute. In December 2024, Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni alleging sexual harassment during production and a retaliatory campaign to damage her reputation. Baldoni denied all the allegations.
He then filed a $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and their publicist. A judge dismissed that case in June 2025. Lively and the remaining defendants in her case reached a settlement in May 2026, ahead of a trial that had been scheduled for May 18.
Even with the case settled, the unsealed documents continue to shape the public conversation. For supporters of Lively and Reynolds, the messages show a husband trying to defend his wife during a moment of intense online pile-on. For critics, they raise questions about how much influence a celebrity spouse should exert behind the scenes.
Page Six said it reached out to representatives for Reynolds, Lively, Zavala and Sony for comment. Those requests were still outstanding when the report was published. As with all material drawn from private messages, the full context behind each exchange is not always clear.
The saga has produced a steady stream of revelations, from Lively’s own texts to Baldoni’s account of a tense meeting at the couple’s apartment in January 2024. Each new batch of documents adds another layer to a story that began with a movie premiere. None of it has been resolved in a way that satisfies everyone involved.
What is clear is that the ‘It Ends With Us’ controversy still has the power to dominate headlines. As more filings become public, the debate over what happened in 2024 is unlikely to fade. For now, the newest texts add another chapter to a story many fans cannot stop following.
Do you think Ryan Reynolds was right to push Sony to publicly defend Blake Lively?
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