In a jaw-dropping twist, Blake Lively’s private plea to Hollywood heavyweights Ben Affleck and Matt Damon exposes just how toxic the set of It Ends With Us became—and why she says the movie “nearly killed” her.
January 22, 2026, will be remembered as the day the It Ends With Us war went nuclear. Unsealed court documents show Blake Lively frantically texting Oscar winners Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, begging them to watch her cut of the film and begging for help against what she calls a “chaotic clown” director—Justin Baldoni.
The Cry for Help: “Don’t Hang Up”
On May 17, 2024, Blake emailed Affleck a blunt SOS: “Ben, It’s Blake. Don’t hang up… I’ve just come out the other side (well almost) of the most upsetting experience I’ve ever had on a movie. This movie nearly killed me.”
She didn’t stop there. She labeled Baldoni—her co-star, director, producer, financier, and studio head—“a chaotic clown” and claimed she had to rewrite and restructure the entire script herself because Baldoni had “zero experience.”
Affleck’s response, if any, hasn’t been made public, but the mere fact that Blake looped in her The Town co-star shows how desperate the situation had become.
Matt Damon Gets the Same Desperate Pitch
While Affleck stayed silent in the filings, Matt Damon answered. Blake’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, sent Damon a “zero-pressure ask” to screen the film. Damon obliged, then flipped the script: he invited Blake to direct her next project at Artists Equity, the production shingle he runs with Affleck.
Blake’s reply? She joked, “Can you believe Jason Bourne is watching my movie?!?!” before thanking him for “good men showing up.”
Taylor Swift Saw the Script—Then Called Blake Out
The filings also expose Blake’s group-chat dynamics with Taylor Swift. Blake sent Swift a revised script on the way to her own apartment—because Baldoni was still inside. Swift fired back, “I’ll do anything for you!!”
But the pop icon later warned Blake that her recent texts sounded like “a mass corporate email sent to 200 employees,” begging her to drop the PR-speak and return to being the “funny, dark, normal-speaking friend.”
Why This Matters: Power, Perception, and the May Trial
- Blake’s legal gamble: She sued Baldoni for sexual harassment and defamation in December 2024; he countersued—then saw that case tossed. Trial is set for May 2026.
- Reputation leverage: By looping in Damon and Affleck, Blake signals she has the industry’s A-list in her corner—an unmistakable flex ahead of jury selection.
- Narrative control: The texts let Blake frame the movie as a toxic production saved only by her rewrite, undercutting Baldoni’s creative authority before opening arguments.
What the Studios Are Really Reading Between the Lines
Insiders say the Damon invite to Artists Equity isn’t just a kindness—it’s a lifeline. With Blake publicly shredding Sony’s handling of It Ends With Us, every major studio now knows she has a billionaire-backed exit hatch if relations sour further.
Meanwhile, Reynolds’ joke about a “movie about the movie” is already being whispered around town as a potential limited-series goldmine—assuming the legal dust settles.
Next Moves: Hollywood Holds Its Breath
Until the May trial, every leaked email, every star cameo, and every late-night text will be parsed for clues. Blake has proven she’ll call in the biggest names to protect her story. Baldoni has vowed to fight on. And Damon and Affleck? They’ve already RSVP’d—on the record.
Stay locked on onlytrustedinfo.com for the fastest, most authoritative updates as the courtroom drama—and the behind-scenes power plays—unfold.
