Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni feud raises doubts about 'It Ends With Us' sequel

After three weeks in theaters, the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling book "It Ends With Us" has become a significant box office success, grossing $242 million worldwide. 

Ticket sales are expected to reach between $285 million and $300 million. In a summer dominated by films aimed at kids and teenage boys, "It Ends With Us" stands out as a rare cinematic event that appeals to female audiences.

The film is also highly profitable. "It Ends With Us" had a production cost of $25 million and is projected to generate at least $25 million to $30 million in profits for both Sony (the film's distributor) and director-star Justin Baldoni’s Wayfarer Studios (which co-financed the movie with TSG Entertainment). Another source familiar with the financial details suggests that the profit margin could be even higher. These figures do not include the earnings for cinemas or box office bonuses for stars Blake Lively and Baldoni.

A sequel to the novel, "It Starts With Us," already exists, eliminating the need to stretch the source material to capitalize on the film's success, similar to how "Big Little Lies" was extended. The existence of this follow-up story indicates that audiences likely haven’t seen the last of Lily, Ryle, and Atlas — the characters played by Lively, Baldoni, and Brandon Sklenar, respectively, in the film. In Hollywood, positive box office results typically lead to the quick announcement of another installment. However, a public feud between Lively and Baldoni has put any plans for a sequel in jeopardy.

“This is uncharted territory, and nobody has any idea of what a sequel could look like,” says a source familiar with the situation. “There’s probably no world where these two will work together again.”