Jana Kramer: Domestic Violence Should Define a Person, Criticizes Blake Lively’s Messaging in It Ends With Us
Trigger Warning: This article includes references to domestic violence and suicide
Jana Kramer is among the many critics questioning the messaging of Blake Lively’s latest release, It Ends With Us. The One Tree Hill alum reflected on her own experience with domestic violence to emphasize her points on Sunday’s episode of her Whine Down podcast, where she said, “It’s hard for people to talk about domestic violence when they haven’t themselves, in real life, had the hands of domestic violence on them.”
Seemingly referencing Lively’s BBC News interview, in which the actress claimed it is “deeply empowering” to show how her character, Lily Bloom, is not “defined by” the abuse she experienced, Kramer, 40, said, “For people to say it doesn’t define you, it does define you. It has made me who I am. And though people can say it doesn’t define you, it [does].
“One of the biggest pieces of me is domestic violence,” she added.
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For those who may not know, Kramer, who expressed disappointment over the movie’s marketing as a rom-com, suffered abuse during her marriage to Michael Gambino in 2004. Per Us Weekly, he was convicted of premeditated attempted murder in 2005 and was sentenced to six years in prison before he died by suicide in 2012.
Kramer said on her podcast that she would love the messaging of the Colleen Hoover book-to-screen adaptation to focus on domestic violence instead of everything else that is being spoken about regarding the project, including the alleged on-set rifts between the actors. The Christmas in Mississippi actress said she “started hearing stuff” and became “sad because [she] just want[s] the messaging to be about domestic violence and how to help people and how to get help.”
Lively, notably, has been slammed by netizens for marketing her newly launched hair care line and a relatively old alcohol brand while promoting the film, which features her character, Lily Bloom, falling in love with neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni) without much hint of his past trauma that makes him an abusive partner later on in their marriage. This occurs right as Lily reconnects with her teenage love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar).
This backlash also brought to light Lively’s previous interviews, where she made sarcastic comments about her earlier gigs and, in one instance, allegedly insulted a reporter.
With rumors of a feud between Lively and Baldoni, Brandon Sklenar took to social media last week to defend his co-star without naming names. “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 counterproductive and detracts from what this film is about,” the actor, 34, wrote via Instagram.
Without mentioning Lively directly, Sklenar called recent headlines about the actress the “opposite of the point.”
For her part, Lively has remained mute on the controversy in the weeks of drama.
If you need support or know someone who is struggling with domestic violence or assault or abuse or having suicidal thoughts, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist, NGO or speak to someone about it. There are several helplines available for the same.
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