Season 35 of Dancing with the Stars has been a doozy so far, with plenty of folks watching the series on ABC (and streaming with a Disney+ subscription). While the biggest headline lately was Val being suspended after invoking Will Smith's Oscars slap, last week also turned heads when Justin Baldoni was seen in the audience. This marks a rare public appearance since his legal battle with Blake Lively began, and an alleged insider is making claims about how Lively and Ryan Reynolds reportedly reacted.
Baldoni and Lively settled and issued a joint statement, but the drama surrounding It Ends With Us (which is streaming with a Hulu subscription) keeps making headlines. Over on Rob Schuter's Substack, the journalist is quoting an alleged insider who is reportedly close to Blake and Ryan. They claim:
Ryan made Disney hundreds of millions with Deadpool, and this is how they repay him? They expected loyalty, not a front-row welcome for the man they’ve been fighting!
We should probably take these rumor with a grain of salt, but this report indicates there might be some drama between the celebrity couple and the powers that be at Disney. Deadpool & Wolverine broke box office records, grossing $533.7 million. If this report is to be believed, it sounds like Reynolds thought that this would have garnered some loyalty with the House of Mouse. But Justin Baldoni attending DWTS' latest episode sends a very different message.
Dancing with the Stars fans love to point out the celebrities in the audience, including alumni from the reality competition series. Justin Baldoni reportedly attended as a guest of host Julianne Hough, as they are friends who have collaborated before. Later in the same report, the same alleged insider made more claims about how Reynolds and Lively are feeling about Baldoni attending the dance show, saying:
Their biggest fear is that Justin is being welcomed back while Blake is struggling to repair her own reputation. He’s on ABC smiling with his family while they’re furious behind closed doors. That’s what really stings.
Baldoni and Lively spent millions on legal fees during their years-long battle over It Ends With Us. The drama also seems to have negatively affected both of their careers, which have slowed down as they duked it out in court. So the fact that the movie's director and star ended up popping up on DWTS this week is a big step forward, one that the Gossip Girl actress reportedly isn't pleased about.
After the It Ends With Us case was settled, Blake Lively attended the Met Gala, marking her first major appearance in quite some time. In many ways it feels like Baldoni and his family at DWTS was his big return to the public, although if this report is to be believed not everyone is happy about it.
Dancing with the Stars airs new episodes Tuesdays on ABC as part of the 2026 TV schedule. We'll just have to see who ends up popping up in the audience next.
