Blake Lively’s It Ends With Us Contract Apparently Offered A Big Bonus If She Had Won An Oscar

The movie It Ends with Us has had one of the most complex stories of any recent film. The movie was a surprise box office smash, which would have been worthy of note on its own, had it not been for the massive legal battle that followed in its wake. The fact that the movie was a big hit, to the point that people were already discussing sequels, has been completely subsumed by the lawsuits.

One thing that definitely was not discussed surrounding It Ends with Us was the major awards. Even before the lawsuits between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni became the primary topic of conversation around the movie, it wasn’t suggested that the film would be a major awards contender, which is unfortunate for Lively, as she reportedly would have made some serious money had she taken home the Oscar as well as other awards.

Blake Lively Would Have Received Bonuses For Award Nominations, Including Oscars

Unsealed court documents released by Justin Baldoni’s legal team and covered by US Weekly include an unsigned draft of Blake Lively’s contract to appear in It Ends with Us. According to the deal, Lively was to be paid $1.75 million as an upfront fee, but was also set to receive $250,000 for each of four milestones if the film earned between three and five times its “direct cost” at the box office.

However, the more interesting bonus structure is attached to potential awards. As stipulated in the contract, Lively would have received additional bonuses if she was nominated for, or won, SAG Awards, Golden Globes, or Oscars. At the top end, Lively would have received $100K for an Oscar nomination and an additional $100K if she won the award.

It Ends With Us Was Never In Contention For Oscars

For the record, Lively was not nominated for any of these awards, nor was there ever much talk that she would be. While IEWU did well at the box office, its critical reception was much more mixed, and that tends to be a stronger indication of award season success than making money.

Perhaps there were higher hopes for the film. Perhaps this was more of a “just in case” situation. These days, many major stars take limited payment up front, with most of their compensation attached to a film’s success, one way or another.

It should be pointed out that the contract released by Baldoni’s lawyers is called a “draft” and is unsigned. It’s not entirely clear if this is actually the final deal that Blake Lively signed, or just one version of the contract that was considered while deals were being negotiated.

Blake Lively accused Justin Baldoni of committing sexual harassment while on the set of It Ends With Us. Baldoni denies the claims and had countersued Lively, though his lawsuit has since been dismissed by a judge. The current case is set to go before a judge in March 2026.