Director Paul Feig is dispelling rumors that “A Simple Favor 2” has been indefinitely delayed by Amazon due to drama surrounding star Blake Lively.
Early Friday morning, an internet investigator, known as “Eric B” on X, posted a thread outlining how Amazon shelved the sequel to the 2018 crime thriller amid Lively’s legal fallout with Justin Baldoni and a reported feud with co-star Anna Kendrick.
“BREAKING: Amazon shelves ‘A Simple Favor 2’ indefinitely,” read the first post of the thread. “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. Anna is furious. Paul Feig is disappointed. Hollywood is in shock. This isn’t just a movie—it’s an implosion.”
Feig responded to the post that evening, adamantly denying there was any trouble with the film’s release.
“This is total BS. Sorry,” Feig wrote. “The movie is finished and coming out soon. Don’t believe anything you read on social media these days.”
The investigator then asked Feig to “clarify” why Amazon had not yet set a release date for the film, noting that it “wrapped in April 2024.” Feig replied, “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.”
In a follow-up reply to a fan, Feig wrote, “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!”