Jana Kramer held nothing back about her take on Blake Lively‘s It Ends With Us movie during a new “Whine Down” podcast episode. While seemingly responding to a red carpet comment that Blake, 37, made, Jana, 40, shared her perspective on the effects of domestic violence.
“For people to say it doesn’t define you, it does define you,” Kramer said in the podcast episode, which aired over the weekend. “It has made me who I am. And though people can say it doesn’t define you, it [does]. … 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.”
Although she didn’t specify what “people” she was referring to, the One Tree Hill alum was seemingly referencing Blake’s comment to the BBC at the premiere of her film.
“This movie covers domestic violence, but what’s important about this film is that [my character Lilly] is not defined by something [that] someone else did to her or an event that happened to her, even if it’s multiple events,” the former Gossip Girl actress told the outlet earlier this month. “She defines herself, and I think that’s deeply empowering. … No one else can define you. No experience can define you. You define you.”
Blake also noted that the It Ends With Us cast and crew “delivered a story that’s emotional and it’s fun, but also funny, painful, scary, tragic and it’s inspiring.”
The film is based on Colleen Hoover‘s book of the same name, and it premiered on August 9. The story follows Blake’s character, Lilly, who is in an abusive relationship with her husband, Ryle (Justin Baldoni). After running into her former high school sweetheart, Atlas, (Brandon Sklenar), the cracks in Lilly and Ryle’s marriage deepen, and she is faced with a choice.
Following its premiere, multiple reports surfaced over alleged tension between Blake and Justin, who also directed the film. However, neither of them has publicly commented on the speculation.
During Jana’s new podcast episode, she seemingly referred to the rumored tension between the It Ends With Us co-stars.
“I would love the messaging to go to DV with [the] media instead of talking about riffs and everything else,” Jana said, before adding, “The movie is about domestic violence.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.