Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds: Breaking Down Their Genius Marketing Strategy Throughout The Years – And How Their Cockiness Is Now Hurting Their Reputation And Legal Battle

I couldn’t help myself and mention the saga between Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds in my previous blog entry, especially since we continue on hearing about the three of them in media and the news, even if it’s unwillingly. I’m personally growing tired of hearing about them and seeing their face, but content is content. At this point, it’s inevitable that they’ll be a topic of discussion, at least until the trial takes place on March 9, 2026. Until then, Justin Baldoni has been trying to clear his name while Blake Lively is continuing to make accusations against him and editing out her evidence while she’s at it. And Ryan Reynolds – he’s just making jokes about the matter. Lively sued Baldoni in December 2024 and accused him of a toxic work environment, sexual misconduct and sexual harassment. Baldoni filed countersuits against Lively, Reynolds, and The New York Times. While he and his wife are now faced with a $400 million lawsuit, Reynolds is making light jokes about the matter publicly – at SNL 50 more recently.

And while we’re on the subject of Saturday Night Live celebrating its 50 year anniversary, another newsworthy couple was there too – Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost. You might be wondering to yourselves why in the world I’d even mention Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost when I initially started the post on Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, and Justin Baldoni. Well… you might’ve forgotten that Ryan Reynolds was once married to Scarlett Johansson. The marriage was so short-lived that very few people in the media even remember the union. At one point, Johansson had to remind a journalist she was married three times, and not twice like as mentioned. She was also previously married to Romain Dauriac between 2014 and 2017. The two also share a daughter, Rose. She also has a son with Jost, born in 2021.

Johansson and Reynold were married between 2008 and 2011. She previously said of their union, ‘I mean, the first time I got married I was 23 years old. I didn’t really have an understanding of marriage. Maybe I kind of romanticized it, I think, in a way.’ She’d also said that she learned more about what she needs in a relationship after her divorce. She also said that compassion is a fundamental characteristic in a relationship. There were multiple reasons for their divorce. These include:

• Busy schedules: Both actors had demanding careers and spent a lot of time apart. 
• Career competition: The logistics of being in a relationship with another actor can be challenging, especially when both careers are taking off. 
• Immaturity: Johansson was 23 when they married, and she later said she didn’t fully understand marriage at the time. 

It’s safe to say that Scarlett Johansson wasn’t meant to spend her life with Ryan Reynolds, and it’s a blessing that they realized it sooner rather than later. It’s also important to note that Johansson was more successful than Reynolds was at the time, which might’ve added the competitive side, as well as toxic masculinity. After all, this was before his ‘Deadpool’ fame. And in 2024, he Reynolds opened up about his marriage to Lively when he compared marriage to his friendship with his longtime friend, High Jackman. He told Elle, ‘I think the secret sauce to a long-lasting Hollywood friendship is not too dissimilar to having a partner or a marriage. I am genuinely rooting for you, all the time. I want you to win. It’s the same way I feel about Blake. As I’m rooting for her, I know she’s rooting for me, and it’s why we’re so connected.’ He also previously opened up to Entertainment Weekly on what his marriage to Lively worked, ‘We don’t take each other too seriously, but we’re also friends. Falling in love is great, but do you like each other? That’s kinda the question you gotta ask yourself, you know, going into it. We’ve always liked each other. We grow together. We learn from each other. So yeah, I’m lucky to have a buddy in that.’ The two first met on the set of 2011’s Green Lantern’, and realized their love for one another during a double date sometime later.

In another interview with Elle, Reynolds spoke more of toxic masculinity, his marriage to Lively, as well as his comfort level in a leading-man role. Of toxic masculinity, he said, ‘I grew up in a household where my dad certainly had aspects of toxic masculinity that I think my brothers and I found a bit off-putting at an early age. We had a great example of what not to do in a lot of instances. I love the idea of modern masculinity and how it’s evolving. Vacillating power dynamics are important in every relationship—not just romantic ones but across the board. It’s better for everyone.’ Of his marriage to Lively, he said, ‘It would shock you how many things [Blake] and I defer to, and rely on, each other for. When the person you are married to is also your friend, it’s a pretty lucky scenario. I think that’s what a relationship is. You complement each other in dynamic ways and help each other grow.’ And of his comfort zone as a leading man, he said, ‘Deadpool does what a lot of movies right now are doing: They subvert themselves. The idea of the modern leading man is ever evolving and changing. There are a lot of leading men in 2019, and leading women, who are also character actors, and I think that’s great. For me, I’ve never felt comfortable in that classically hyper-masculine leading-man role. I’ve never been comfortable being the type of man who is intermittently clenching his jaw muscles and squinting for no reason and speaking in a deep, gravelly voice. It doesn’t suit me, and I don’t suit it and never will. But playing with that in weird ways and laughing at myself—that works for me.’

I find it very interesting that Reynolds is someone that’s considered to be redefining the term ‘toxic masculinity’ just the same as Baldoni has in the past decade. It’s all so ironic and cosmic. They’ve been on the same spectrum for years and years. Heck, maybe if it wasn’t for Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni and Ryan Reynolds would’ve gotten along and would’ve been great friends just like Reynolds has been with Hugh Jackman. The thing about Lively is that she’s the type of woman who always wants to be in control. She always needs to be right. She always needs to maintain her ‘perfection’. She always needs to look good. And she needs to have everyone around her on HER side. Her facial expression as soon as Reynolds jokingly asked Tina Fey and Amy Poehler when they asked how he was and he said, ‘What have you heard?’ in a sarcastic way was very telling. And if you look closely at the clip, you can see that it was heavily edited. No one laughed, but the laugh track certainly made its way to make it seem otherwise.

In my eyes, Blake Lively could be compared to Regina George. She’s your typical mean girl. She even has the long, striking blonde hair to go along to prove that she could be compared to the fictional character that came to life by Rachel McAdams in 2004. And just as a fun fact, Tina Fey wrote the script for ‘Mean Girls’ as well its 2024 sequel. Lively also auditioned to play the role of Karen in the original film, but it eventually went to Amanda Seyfried, who was absolutely perfect. Of the audition process for the movie, Seyfried told Vanity Fair in 2023, ‘I think the reason I got Karen was I played that person in high school in order to stay out of the drama. It was a much easier transition into playing Karen from where I was at in my life at that point. I had worked with this comedic director on my Karen audition because I’d first auditioned for Regina, and I’d flown out to LA for the first time with my mother. It was very exciting. I met Lacey Chabert for the first time, and Lindsay Lohan was in the room, and Blake Lively was playing Karen. And then I was Regina.’

I personally can’t imagine any other foursome than the ones we ended up getting in the original ‘Mean Girls’ movie. They had such undeniable chemistry that made the movie become the cult classic that it now is, even 21 years later. It’s even more interesting that Blake Lively auditioned to be a part of the film, and not for the role of Regina. In hindsight, she IS Regina George in the real world of the Hollywood life. For the past decade or so, it was always assumed that Taylor Swift was real life’s Regina George, as she’d been compared to the fictional character too. And she might’ve been the Regina George of the music industry. For example, in 2014, Katy Perry tweeted, ‘Watch out for the Regina George in sheep’s clothing’, in reference to Taylor Swift. Perry tweeted this after Swift told Rolling Stone that her song ‘Bad Blood’ was about another female artist who she thought of as a friend. Swift later released the song ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ which some say references Mean Girls and Regina George.

I can’t say whether this is actually true or not. There have been many times throughout the years where Swift proved to be a good, giving person. The media absolutely loves to villainize during women such as Swift, and in my personal opinion, her era of girl-squads, party hosting, and being boy-crazy was simply her trying to be a regular 20-something year old woman who also happened to be in the public eye. But what the f*ck do I know? It’s not like I even know her personally. What I do know, however, is that if Taylor Swift is considered to be the Regina George of the music, then Blake Lively is the Regina George of the movie industry. And suddenly, their friendship dynamic actually makes perfect sense.

So it’s no secret that Blake Lively is a mean girl. With the exception of her ‘The Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants’ and her ‘It Ends With Us’ co-stars, as well her ‘A Simple Favor’ director and co-star, no one who’s ever worked with her came to defend her following her her complaint filing against Baldoni. In fact, more people than not opened up just how difficult she is to work with. We’ve already established the fact that Lively isn’t a likeable person. But this begs the question: Why do women have to be likable to be believed? Women certainly don’t have to be likeable in order to be believed. Lively had every right to demand protection, as well as for the protection of others, especially since she was also the producer of the movie, from her bosses.

HOWEVER….

Lively didn’t have the right to make sh*t up and edit out all her evidence to upscale her case. Baldoni’s lawsuit against her and Reynolds, as well his lawsuit against The New York Times, proved that she did. In his lawsuit against the married couple, he cited defamation and extortion. To say that his career was ruined following Lively’s allegations would be a serious underwhelming testimony. He practically lost everything. It’s also important to point out that unlike Lively, he’d worked on his career from the ground up. Lively, on the other hand, was born into fame. Her father was an actor. Her mother is a former casting agent. Her sister is an actress. And her brother-in-law is an actor and an acting coach. And now, she’s married to Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool himself.

Baldoni never had a history in his entire career of anyone complaining about his work ethic and professionalism. In fact, the opposite. All of his co-workers, peers and employees have done nothing but praise him. Lively, on the other hand, has been questioned time of her work ethic and professionalism in her entire 20-year career. We’re only now just seeing because of what we’ve witnessed throughout the ‘It Ends With Us’ saga. And yet, Lively has the upper hand in the case. She has powerful people around her. She has more connections. She has more reasons for people to want to be on her side as it would benefit their own businesses.

When her complaint against Baldoni was made public, Baldoni was dropped his talent agency, WME, which also represents Lively and Reynolds. Ariel Emanuel, owner of the agency, spoke with People directly thereafter of the matter, as well as on his decision to drop Baldoni as a client. He said, ‘These are good people who have been in the business for decades and have never had any bad press about them. And all the people they’ve worked with like them. I fired him (Baldoni). I am a ride-or-die.’ I most certainly beg to differ. Both Lively and Reynolds bring in more monetary gain for WME, so of course Emmanuel had an obligation to let Baldoni go as a client. Not for the matter of right or wrong, but rather what’s best for the business.

Up until this very point, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively were considered to be ‘The Golden Couple’. The public couldn’t get enough of them. They were dreamy. They were fun. They were exciting. They were the duo that were probably known best for their sense of humour on social media and undeniable chemistry rather than for the actual movies that they both made. Their marketing strategy has been on point over the years, and it’s paid off over the years beyond them making movies. Lively’s career, in particular, has blossomed beyond movie and TV since she became romantically involved with Reynolds, with brand partnerships that include:

• L’Oreal: In 2014, Lively signed a deal to be the face of the cosmetics company. 
• Gucci: In 2012, Lively signed a deal with the high fashion house. 
• Chanel: In 2011, Lively was the face of Chanel’s Mademoiselle handbag line. 
• Betty Buzz: In 2021, Lively launched a line of non-alcoholic mixer drinks named after her grandmother Betty. 

As of July 2024, Reynolds’ net worth was estimated to be at least USD $350 million – and he was well on his way to becoming a billionaire. He’s become known for his wit, self-awareness, and social mediapresence. Just like other celebrities, he’d regularly share updates on Instagram and Twitter, now better known as X. He’s leveraged his social media following and global fame to capture market share for various businesses he started. Over the years, his efforts besides acting include:

• Maximum Effort – In 2018, Reynolds founded Maximum Effort, a production and advertising company that creates viral campaigns for both his brands and other businesses. Over the next years, it produced various movies, TV series, and ads which further increased his brands’ value. 
• Aviation American Gin – In the same year, he bought a stake in Aviation Gin and became the creative director and face of the brand, appearing in its advertising campaigns. Later on, he sold the company for $610 million, and reportedly made $120 million from the deal. 
• Mint Mobile – He purchased a 25% stake in Mint Mobile in 2019. Since then, he appeared in various marketing campaigns, helping the brand grow its revenue by nearly 50,000% over three years. 
• Wrexham AFC – Reynolds and fellow Hollywood actor Rob McElhenney bought Welsh football club Wrexham in November 2020. Their goal was to grow the team and return it to the English Football League (EFL). 

In the time that he’s been with Lively, Reynolds reached a level of fame, fortune, and success that he lacked during his marriage to Scarlett Johansson, which most probably was the reason why they broke up in the first place. Lively is an actress in her own right, but she never reached the level of success and recognition that Johansson did in her career; even now. By 2008, Johansson was already Black Widow in the MCU universe. Reynolds was still sphere, playing silly characters that he probably didn’t like himself. In his Elle interview that I mentioned earlier, Reynolds said that his secret to marriage with Lively was that they were each other’s biggest fans, and that they wanted each other to succeed. He probably didn’t want that with Johansson. He probably felt threatened by her success, which was most likely why their marriage wasn’t meant to be. He didn’t feel like he could be her cheerleader because he was jealous of her success. And even though Lively herself has been part of the industry just as long as Johansson, her popularity only grew with her marriage to Reynolds, and THAT was the secret to their marriage.

Ryan Reynolds, in a way, has become a brand in itself. Traditional marketing relies heavily on polished, professional ads featuring celebrities on a pedestal – in a flawless albeit sometimes cold and detached way. Reynolds, doesn’t promote anything he does this way. Instead, he’s used his charm and personality to make the brand feel more personal and genuine. He knows exactly who his fans are, and he gives them what they want. Studies show that customers want brands to be authentic. In fact, 70% of them reportedly purchase more from brands they find genuine. Reynolds’ personality is inextricably linked to his brand- and he’s not afraid to show vulnerability or even poke fun at himself to prove a point. His fans trust him because he’s funny, charming, and most importantly, confident. He speaks directly to the audience in a casual, friendly manner, as if chatting with a friend.

The world got a glimpse of just how good Reynolds was with his marketing tactics during the promotional tour of ‘Green Lantern’ in 2010. At the time, neither Reynolds nor Lively were single. Reynolds was still married to Scarlett Johansson, and Lively was in a long-term relationship with Penn Badgley, who was her ‘Gossip Girl’ co-star at the time. And yet, the chemistry between them was undeniable. It was clearest case of chemistry you’ve ever seen. I’m talking giggling, flirty touches and non-stop compliments for one another. By the end of the press tour, both couples had called it quits, and you just have to wonder whether this marketing strategy of theirs had something to do with it. The press tour for the movie was more successful than the movie itself, and it was all thanks to the chemistry between the two leading stars. But according to Reynolds, the two hadn’t started dating until ‘Green Lantern’ had come out. He told Jess Cagle on SiriusXM in 2016, ‘We were buddies for a long time, which I think is the best way to have a relationship, to start as friends. About a year after ‘Green Lantern’ had come and gone and we were both single, we went on a double date — she was on a date with another guy, and I was on a date with another girl — and it was like the most awkward date for the respective parties because we were just like fireworks coming across.’

I could somewhat believe that. Noah Centineo and Lana Condor used their undeniable chemistry to promote their ‘To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before’ movie franchise. They especially used their fact that their fans thought they were dating during the promotional tour for the first movie. In reality, Condor was already in a relationship with her now-husband, Anthony De La Torre, and Condor was actually the one who decided to change the narrative in the promotion of her movies with Centineo out of respect for her partner. Nevertheless, the strategy worked. Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell used the same marketing strategy for their movie, ‘Anyone But You’, even though she’d already been engaged by that point to Jonathan Davino, and so did Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga for ‘A star Is Born’. When Oprah asked Lady Gaga of the romance rumours that circulated at the time, Gaga said, ‘Quite frankly, I think the press is very silly. I mean, we made a love story. For me, as a performer and as an actress, of course we wanted people to believe that we were in love. And we wanted people to feel that love at the Oscars. We wanted it to go right through the lens of that camera and to every television that it was being watched on. And we worked hard on it, we worked for days. We mapped the whole thing out—it was orchestrated as a performance. In truth, when we talked about it [afterwards], we went, ‘well, I guess we did a good job!’’

Blake Lively didn’t use this marketing strategy with her ‘It Ends With Us’ love interest, Brandon Sklenar, who played Atlas in the film adaptation. They had absolutely no chemistry on-screen. In fact, it was the actors playing the younger versions of their respective characters made their love story believable. The marketing campaign for ‘It Ends With Us’ focused on Blake Lively and still used a romantic tone, even though the movie is about domestic violence. This strategy drew criticism from some who felt it was insensitive and tone-deaf. ‘Grab your friends, wear your florals,’ was a tagline Lively used to get fans to see the movie. Her character, Lily Bloom, Lily Bloom, was a florist. Lively has been seen wearing floral clothing during press as a nod to her character.  The phrase was also used in social media posts and videos to encourage people to dress in floral attire and see the movie in theaters. She also launched several business ventures with the release of her movie, an alcohol brand and a hair care line. And because ‘It Ends With Us’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ were released simultaneously in the summer of 2024, Lively added Reynolds and Hugh Jackman to the her marketing campaign, making it a Barbenheimer 2.0 marketing strategy.

This really would’ve been a brilliant plan; if only Reynolds and Lively had used their promotional abilities to actually create awareness surrounding the movie. Instead of doing so, they made light of the movie’s serious topic; almost mocking domestic violence survivors. The movie itself didn’t fail to spread awareness of the pain that women experience, nor to the injustice and turmoil that transpires on women’s daily lives. Lively, however, failed the victims by  clearly lacking any semblance of empathy for those who have suffered. She insinuated that the movie was lighthearted, fun, and for a great excuse for a girls’ night out, while failing to speak up for those without a voice. According to Forbes, nearly 40% of women do not seek help in DV relationships. 

In her promotion of the film, not once did Lively ever acknowledge the subject of domestic violence. Instead, she talked about fashion, her hair, and her booze. Only after she was called out publicly, she made a statement on Instagram. She wrote, ‘Thank you to everyone who came out to show that people WANT to see films about women and the multitudes we hold. It Ends With Us is a story of the female experience. All the highest highs, and lowest lows. And we are so proud of it. ‘We have been in celebration of this film and of getting a message so important out there to the masses. ‘Thank you all for embracing @itendswithusmovie with the same love, pain and joy we had sharing it with you all. This move covers domestic violence but what’s important about this film is that she is not just a survivor and she’s not just a victim. 1 in 4 women aged 18 and older in the US alone have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. Intimate partner violence affects all genders, including more than 12 million people every year in the United States. Everyone deserves relationships free from domestic violence. The National Domestic Violence Hotline provides confidential support 24/7/365.’

As an executive producer, Lively brought Reynolds in to be involved in the making of the movie, as well as the promotion of the movie. Reynolds used the marketing strategy that he’d been known for over the years to promote the movie as a romance film. It worked people fell for it. Heck, I fell for it. I found it hilarious and actually brilliant. It would’ve been had the movie ACTUALLY been a rom-com. Instead, he, along with Lively, made us feel like we, actual domestic violence survivors, feel like we were less than. What he did was trivialize the film’s serious subject matter. The cross-promotion with ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ was a gimmick that didn’t generate meaningful conversation that actually needed to be had. Sources had said to the Daily Mail that Reynolds jumped in to help the film from disaster. The source added that ‘Ryan didn’t want this to fail for anyone, especially his wife. It was nothing against Justin [Baldoni], but Justin took it personally and it is not Ryan’s fault, nor does he have any apology to give. He got nothing out of this. He didn’t want any credit. He just wanted to see Blake’s first big break back into the business succeed.’

But of course Baldoni took it personally. This was a movie that he was passionate about. This was the subject matter he was passionate about. He never cared about the money. He cared about spreading awareness. He was the one who reached out to Colleen Hoover to tell her he wanted her book to be developed into a film after he read it. The movie adaptation only happened because of him. Lively, on the other hand, never even read the book. She didn’t understand her character’s depth, and it absolutely showed – from the clothes she chose her character to wear in the movie to everything she’d said about her character in the film’s press tour. She never cared enough to spread awareness surrounding domestic violence. She only cared about the money. Hoover went along with Lively because she, too, cared about what made the most money.

Their marketing plan worked. ‘It Ends With Us’ made $351 million in the box office over a $25 million budget. It wouldn’t have made nearly as much money had Lively and Reynolds promoted the film for what it actually was. People, women especially, were excited to see a romantic comedy in theatres. They were looking forward to forget about the world for two hours, because that was what was promised by Blake Lively Ryan Reynolds, and team. Instead, they were traumatized and given absolutely no working of the subject matter they were about to see. An hour into the movie, they were triggered, especially those who’d been affected by domestic violence. This angered a lot of fans, and Blake Lively was called out for it. In her complaint against Justin Baldoni, Lively put the blame on the social media smear campaign against her on him.

The biggest mistake, I think that Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively made was becoming too cocky with their success. They’d become so used to being loved and adored, as well dominating Hollywood by its storm, that they just didn’t think their wrongdoings would catch up to them. It did, and it’s continued to do so even now. Reynolds’ marketing strategy and personal brand might’ve helped ‘It Ends With Us’ reach box office success, but it could now hurt Lively’s legal battle against Baldoni, because it just keeps proving Baldoni’s argument to be right.

‘It Ends With Us’ could’ve been such a great film. It could’ve done so much good for victims and survivors of domestic violence. Instead, it was overshadowed by Lively’s tone deaf persona and her personal issues with Baldoni. The film’s marketing, specifically on Lively’s side, and the drama between the cast also drew attention away from the film’s potential. The movie itself was earnest and powerful in its exploration of what it feels like to be caught in a cycle of violence. It marked to be Baldoni’s greatest work yet, in my eyes at least. I just wish he could’ve celebrated this achievement properly. I wish him the best in the ongoing battle. With that said, however, I wish some people on his team weren’t as tone deaf as Lively. Earlier this month, a producer for ‘It Ends With Us’ compared Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds to Hamas. According to Lively’s newest claims following SNL 50, Steve Sarowitz compared her and her husband to Hamas, terrorist organization. He allegedly said, ‘I will protect the studio like Israel protected itself from Hamas. There were 39,000 dead bodies. There will be two dead bodies when I’m done. Minimum. Not dead, but ‘you’re dead to me.’ So that kind of dead. But dead to a lot of people. If they ever get me to that point. Then I’ll make it worth their while. Because I’m gonna spend a lot of money to make sure the studio is protected.’

More in the next post….