Check out some of the messages Blake Lively sent to her close friends, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, about Justin Baldoni, her 'egotistic' co-star from 'It Ends With Us'. Buckle up, as it's a wild ride!
The drama surrounding the ongoing feud between It Ends With Us co-stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni has escalated following the case's recent court session. Baldoni's defence attorneys presented unsealed documents to the New York civil court, including texts that Lively allegedly sent to secure Hollywood's A-listers as allies, shedding light on the actress's account of what happened behind the scenes of It Ends With Us. Take a look at some of the messages Lively sent to Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. And yes, they are exactly as wild as the headlines suggest.
On January 20, 2026, Baldoni's defence attorneys presented unsealed documents to the New York civil court, including Lively's private text exchanges with Matt Damon, his wife, Luciana Damon, aka Lucy, and Ben Affleck, where she asked them to watch her cut of the film and support that version over Baldoni's.
The unsealed documents presented to the court revealed a lengthy string of texts exchanged between Blake Lively and the Damons in a private group chat. The messages, which, according to the filings, were sent in May 2024, revealed that Baldoni had proceeded with It Ends With Us with "zero experience". Lively wrote:
"This movie nearly killed me. The director/costar/producer/financier/head of the studio (yes, all one person) had zero experience, but the good news is he also has no taste, and an enormous ego, but only because he’s in a cult and believes he’s our century’s prophet. I wish even one of these things was hyperbole... What I didn’t anticipate was having to do everything in this movie."
Blake went on to describe what she claims became an all-consuming role behind the scenes. The 38-year-old actress said she had to rewrite the entire script and even direct the entire cast. She added that, after doing much of the creative heavy lifting, she was still sidelined during post-production and given just "10 days" to put together an edit to rival Baldoni’s months-long cut. The actress mentioned:
"I rewrote the entire script. I directed every actor. The DP was coming to me when he couldn’t get anything from him. So, way too often. Then, after all this, Justin wouldn’t bring me into the [?]. He had no idea what he had because he didn’t author any of it. They gave me 10 days to scrap together an edit to compete with an edit he’s been making since July. I’ve been sleep about an hour and a half each night bc that’s obviously not enough time, so I’ve just been gunning it."
One of the text responses that grabbed attention was Matt Damon's supportive message for Blake, agreeing to help her however he and his wife could. In his signature humour, the Rip star offered that the actress direct her next movie at Artists Equity, the production house that Damon co-founded with Ben Affleck. He wrote:
"We’ll give you any help we can. And if this experience hasn’t totally destroyed your soul, Blake, you should come direct your next movie at Artists Equity. We’re kind of like a cult but a really nice one."
The court filings later mentioned that Artists Equity even reached out to Sony to support Blake Lively's edit of the movie.
Around the same time as these text exchanges, Blake had sent a separate email to Ben Affleck, in which she shaded Baldoni as a "chaotic clown" whose ego made it harder for her to direct the actors freely. She even alleged that everyone in the movie had been part of a "cult", though nothing else was specified. A part of the email reads:
"I ended up rewriting and restructuring the entire script. I also ended up having to direct the movie via the chaotic clown 'director'/actor/producer/financier/studio head at the centre. Yes, that’s all the same person. Oh, and did I mention he and everyone he had in the movie is in a cult? If I would’ve just formally directed it, it would’ve been much easier, but having to troubleshoot through his taste, ego and preexisting decisions made it so difficult, and that’s not even touching on any of the wild HR issues and beyond."
In a separate text exchange with a person whose name was redacted, Blake Lively mentioned that Colleen Hoover, the author of It Ends With Us, attended a screening of her cut of the film, saying that it "killed in the room". She also mentioned Bradley Cooper, who allegedly watched her cut twice and "made [her] feel so good about the cut."
The texts and emails are all a part of Blake's ongoing legal battle with Justin. What began as creative differences between the co-stars has now escalated into a high-stakes feud. And now, with the unsealed messages, it remains to be seen where the case is headed.
What are your thoughts about Blake Lively's text exchanges with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck?
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