"I can no longer just continue living with blinders on"- When Justin Baldoni discussed his "responsibility" of challenging traditional masculinity
Over the past few days, Justin Baldoni has become one of the most discussed people on the planet after veteran actress Blake Lively accused the 40-year-old of s*xual harassment, a hostile work environment, and trying to tarnish her reputation while working on his film, It Ends With Us. The drama surrounding the movie has been going on for a long time but the actress finally filed a complaint earlier this month.
Interestingly, though Justin Baldoni is now being accused of some heinous activities by Blake Lively, like forcefully adding s*x scenes in the movie and walking into her trailer while she was breastfeeding, Baldoni had always tried to maintain a public image where is a vocal advocate against toxic masculinity.
In an interview from 2022, Justin Baldoni was seen calling this his "responsibility" as he discussed his advocacy against traditional masculinity with Forbes. When asked about his movement, Man Enough, he said:
"Truthfully, it feels like a responsibility, like an obligation–something that, because I am aware of it, I can no longer just continue living with blinders on. I feel an obligation to my children, to my wife, to my friends, to my parents. I'm somebody who always wants to work on myself. I don't believe in complacency. And so much of this work is healing for me also, so it's an obligation to myself."
It is quite ironic that the former actor and director who has spent a significant time advocating a better image of what men should be is one of the most infamous men on social media right now.
"It's also for all of the women in my life who continue to tell me unbelievable stories that you just can't imagine"- Justin Baldoni on challenging traditional masculinity
Justin Baldoni has written a book called Man Enough: Undefining My Masculinity and has also been a part of a very successful podcast, Man Enough, all of which talks about his take on traditional masculinity and how it can often be toxic.
In the same interview with Forbes in 2022, the former actor further expanded on what he felt his responsibility was as a man. He said:
"For me, this is a radical act of self-love. Using whatever little platform I have to talk about these issues forces me to learn in real time, forces me to go deeper, forces me to not allow the bar to be so low that I can just crawl over it and get a pat on the back."
He continued:
"It's also for all of the women in my life who continue to tell me unbelievable stories that you just can't imagine [still exist today]....Just turn on the news. Look at what's happening around the world. Look at politics, climate change, s*xual assault and r*pe cases, suicides, crime–it intersects with all of it. I don't think you could separate the conversation of masculinity in men with all of the current events happening around the world that make us feel so hopeless at times."
He also went on to say that this was his contribution to society in trying to make it a little better than before. His past behavior has further probed commentary on social media platforms.
As of now, many other actors like Amber Heard and America Ferrera have spoken in support of Blake Lively. An enquiry into the complete matter is of course going to take place very soon.
Meanwhile, special media continues to boil over with the drama surrounding the new revelations about Justin Baldoni.
