Blake Lively drama doesn't halt 'A Simple Favor 2', says director Paul Feig

Hollywood filmmaker Paul Feig has angrily refuted that Blake Lively's sequel was scrapped because she and her co-stars had a falling out.

When a social media user on X stated that the 2018 movie A Simple Favor's sequel had been shelved, it sparked a false rumour on Friday night.

The 62-year-old legend Paul directed the first movie, in which Blake played Emily Nelson, also known as Hope McLanden and Faith McLanden.

In the comedy-thriller, Anna Kendrick as Stephanie Smothers, who looks into her glitzy friend's disappearance. Blake has been the subject of numerous unfavourable headlines in recent months as a result of the dramatic fallout from director and co-star Justin Baldoni of It Ends With Us.

Paul, however, stepped up to argue that it was simply untrue when an X user stated that A Simple Favour 2 had been cancelled as collateral damage for Blake and Justin's falling out.

The eyebrow-raising original X post stated: "BREAKING: Amazon shelves A Simple Favor 2 indefinitely. Despite glowing test screenings, Blake Lively’s refusal to promote—amid her messy legal battle with Justin Baldoni—and growing tensions with Anna Kendrick have derailed the sequel."

He went on to claim: "Anna is furious. Paul Feig is disappointed. Hollywood is in shock. This isn’t just a movie—it’s an implosion." But Paul himself railed against the claims - and blasted them as false. Responding to the post on X, he wrote: "This is total BS. Sorry. The movie is finished and coming out soon. Don’t believe anything you read on social media these days."

The original poster then demanded more information, writing: "Hi Paul, if my story is ‘false,’ could you clarify why Amazon hasn’t set a release date for a film that wrapped in April 2024? Why are there no promo plans yet? Saying ‘coming out soon’ doesn’t really address the delays or the concerns. Would love to hear more!"

But insisting the film will be released, Paul wrote: "My friend, it’s called post production, which generally takes over half a year at least when you factor in editing, scoring, special effects, sound mixing, close captioning and all the technical quality control that has to be done. Our post schedule always had us finishing everything by mid-January. Movies don’t come out the second they’re finished because the studio spends the previous year deciding the best date to release it. We’ve always planned on something in the spring/summer of this year. That’s how movies work. I hope this helps."

Another fan reacted to Paul's posts, to write: "Thank you for confirming that this thread is bs!" And the director replied to them too, writing: "The movie is awesome, and Blake and Anna turn in amazing performances. I can’t wait for you all to see it. Stay tuned for more details. Simple Favor 2 is coming soon!"

The original A Simple Favour movie was well-reviewed by critics, and Blake and Anna were both commended for their performances. Additionally, it did well at the box office, selling more than four times as many tickets as it had budgeted.