The Blake Lively backlash has been 'a gift' for Justin Baldoni after he was forced to hire a PR crisis manager amid rumored 'It Ends With Us' feud, PR expert says

• Justin Baldoni has hired a PR crisis team amid the drama surrounding "It Ends With Us."
• The rumored feud between the actor and his costar, Blake Lively, has made headlines in recent weeks.

"It Ends With Us," the new movie starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, has quickly become a box office hit, surpassing $200 million globally since its release earlier this month.

While there are several reasons behind the film's success, one thing that may have led to added interest is the rumored feud brewing off-screen between the film's lead and her costar/director, Baldoni.

The reported falling out has made headlines in recent weeks and led to a reexamination of Lively's past, with many criticizing the star's previous behavior.

But while Lively is now trying to save her reputation, Baldoni has been navigating the changing tides of public opinion with a move from the celebrity scandal playbook — hiring a PR crisis team.

The actor and director, who rose to fame starring in the sitcom "Jane the Virgin," has sought the help of veteran public relations manager Melissa Nathan, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"This was the right move for him," Megan Balyk, a PR expert and vice president of Jive PR + Digital, told Business Insider. "We always recommend hiring a reputation management firm before you need it."

"I think this shows us that Justin doesn't trust Blake and believes she will try to control the narrative. He's trying to ensure this outcome doesn't negatively impact his career," Balyk added.

Eric Schiffer, chairman of Reputation Management Consultants, said that one of the first things Baldoni likely would have done with his new crisis team was to lay out "what truly went down behind the scenes."

The public hasn't yet got the full picture of this.

It was only after people noticed that the pair weren't interacting during the film's promotional tour this month that people started digging into what had occurred and came up with a variety of wild theories.

TMZ and Page Six have since reported on tension on the set of the movie, while unnamed sources told The Hollywood Reporter that further problems occurred in post-production when two different cuts of the movie emerged.

Baldoni would need to fill in the gaps to his PR team, confirming or denying the reported rumors and giving his team the full picture, Schiffer said.

"Once you have that, you can formulate a battle plan," he continued. "A big part of this is ensuring you don't detonate problems that can explode."

"But if things are favorable, it can benefit the client to 'leak' the truth if it's not already out there," Schiffer added.

There was some speculation online that journalist Kjersti Flaa may have been part of a smear campaign against Lively after she reuploaded to YouTube a 2016 interview with the actor and titled it: "The Blake Lively interview that made me want to quit my job."

The now-viral interview showed Lively acting hostile toward the reporter after she congratulated the star on her pregnancy.

Speaking to MailOnline, Flaa said of her motivation to share the footage: "It's time that people behaving badly in Hollywood, or anywhere else for that matter, gets called out for it. It's not OK, even if you are rich and famous."

There's no evidence that the public's sudden pile-on of Lively is Baldoni's crisis team in action.

Instead, as Schiffer said, Baldoni has "been given a gift because of the distracting components that have arisen" concerning the former "Gossip Girl" star.

"The last thing Justin's going to want to do is redirect that attention back onto him," he said.

"The rule is if the other side is destroying themselves because of bad choices, you don't change the subject. You allow that to play out," he added.

Balyk said that the actions Baldoni has taken already have helped give him the image of someone down-to-earth with the best interests of those who might relate to the movie in mind.

Recent social media posts show him with his family talking about what inspired him to get into acting and surprising fans at screenings in the US.

Meanwhile, in interviews, he has spoken graciously about Lively and shifted attention to "all the women who we made this movie for."

While much has been made of the fact that Baldoni's new crisis team previously represented Johnny Depp during his high-profile court battle against Amber Heard, Balyk said that that likely had more to do with the fact that Baldoni needs a heavyweight fighting his corner, given that Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds likely have an "equally strong PR team that is likely on standby."

"While Melissa Nathan has handled controversial cases like Johnny Depp's trial, her expertise in the entertainment industry is unparalleled, which is necessary given that one of the most powerful couples in Hollywood has a direct hand in the film," she said.

As for how Baldoni should proceed, Schiffer said he just needed to "allow things to play out."

"When it comes down to it, Justin has a successful movie. Right now, the focus is not on him but on Blake and her choices, and that's where I suggest he try and keep it," he added.