Blake Lively was ‘surprised’ by backlash surrounding It Ends With Us

As Blake Lively remains silent following a slew of negative headlines, a source close to the star has revealed she’s been “surprised” by the criticism.

Blake Lively has gone underground as her glowing Hollywood reputation copped a beating following the release of her latest film.

The US actress, 37, hasn’t posted on Instagram at all in weeks, and has stayed completely silent amid widespread criticism over what many deemed to be tone deaf, fluffy promotion for It Ends With Us, a movie adapted from Colleen Hoover’s novel about domestic violence.

Now, a source close to Lively has told People how she’s been quietly coping, claiming the actress was “pretty surprised at the backlash and drama.”

“She initially felt very vulnerable and upset,” the source continued.

“During the promotion of the movie, not one day went by when she was not in the news in an unfavourable light. She’s just not used to this kind of drama.”

Blake Lively at the London premiere of It Ends With Us in early August. Picture: JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP

It Ends With Us has become the highest-grossing box-office hit of Lively’s career, pulling in more than $US300 million at the global box office to date.

But Lively hasn’t been sharing celebratory posts about her film’s success, which is unexpected given how heavily she hit the promo trail in the lead up with a flurry of social media posts on her page, as well as hosting glitzy events and attending red carpet premieres in a number of countries.

Feud rumours first emerged in early August, with Lively and the movie’s director and male lead, Justin Baldoni, at the centre.

The pair didn’t do any interviews together, nor did they pose on red carpets alongside one another.

Justin Baldoni directed and starred in the film. Picture: Cindy Ord/Getty Images

Lively with her husband Ryan Reynolds. Picture: Cindy Ord/Getty Images

At first, many took Lively’s side, however things quickly went against her favour when fans were left unimpressed by the Gossip Girl star plugging her new haircare line, her Betty Buzz alcohol brand and more personal projects while promoting the heavy film. Meanwhile, Baldoni seemingly took a more sombre approach to promo, where he spread the message about domestic violence and expressed remorse for victims.

Further, a handful of awkward interviews resurfaced of Lively, most notably, her 2016 filmed chat with journalist Kjersti Flaa, who said she “wanted to quit” her job after her encounter with the star.

While Lively has remained hush, her It Ends With Us co-star Brendan Sklenar defended her in a statement released in late August.

“I wanted to take a minute and address all this stuff swirling online,” Sklenar began his lengthy Instagram post in reference to the film’s controversial press tour.

He wrote that “the women of this cast stand for hope, perseverance, and for women choosing a better life for themselves.”

“Vilifying the women who put so much of their heart and soul into making this film because they believe so strongly in its message seems counter-productive and detracts from what this film is about,” Sklenar continued.

He went on to call recent headlines the “opposite of the point”.

Sklenar added, “What may or may not have happened behind the scenes does not and hopefully should not detract from what our intentions were in making this film. It’s been disheartening to see the amount of negativity being projected online.”

Lively is next set to appear on the big screen in the untitled sequel to 2018’s Simple Favor, which co-stars Anna Kendrick.

There is not yet a release date for the film, though both Lively and Kendrick were photographed filming scenes in Italy in April.