Anne Hathaway taught Blake Lively a major lesson in swerving public backlash

“People respect that level of humility and openness, and it keeps her relatable to her audience,” said Holyoak, founder of PR company One March.

Yely Kopan is a self-employed PR consultant with almost a decade of experience in the industry. Kopan, a former creative director at Input Communications, told BI that Hathaway’s note to Flaa was “a smart move” because it showed she was willing “to take accountability, even years later.”

“It helps reinforce her image as someone who’s genuine and approachable, which ultimately strengthens her personal brand,” Kopan said.

Hathaway is no stranger to online criticism

Flaa wouldn’t share which personal circumstances Hathaway alluded to in her note.

However, it’s worth noting that when the movie was released in 2012, Hathaway was at the height of her career and had experienced an excessive amount of online trolling.

“Les Misérables” was a success at the box office; it grossed more than $441 million worldwide and earned a total of $148.8 million in the US, Playbill reported.

“Looking back, I still feel that I handled it the best way I could,” Flaa previously told BI.

“In these settings, they always blame the journalist if something goes wrong. It’s never the talent’s fault no matter what happens,” she added.

At the time of writing, Lively has not publicly commented on the resurfaced interview. Representatives for Lively did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Holyoad said Lively could “definitely take a page from Anne’s playbook” and apologize to Flaa.

“By reaching out personally and acknowledging any missteps, Blake could turn this around and potentially win back a lot of goodwill,” he added.

Meanwhile, Kopan said Lively would show “maturity and self-awareness” if she followed Hathaway’s lead.

“Even if she doesn’t think she did anything wrong, acknowledging someone else’s experience can go a long way in building trust,” Kopan said.

Zoe Mumba is a PR expert with seven years of experience. Since 2022, she has handled PR for the tech company Bitmovin.

Speaking to BI, Mumba said Lively’s silence has “compounded the issue, leading people to search for more interviews where she might be seen as rude and increasing scrutiny of her behavior.”

The backlash surrounding Lively’s interview coincided with the promotion of her latest film, “It Ends With Us.” The movie was adapted from Colleen Hoover’s book of the same name about a woman who experiences domestic abuse.

It earned more than $309 million in global ticket sales, The Hollywood Reporter said in September.

It has become Lively’s most successful film to date, surpassing the 2011 film “The Green Lantern,” which made more than $237 million in global ticket sales, People reported.

However, its success was overshadowed by the criticism Lively received for her lighthearted and comedic approach to the press for the film, which contrasted with the film’s serious subject matter.

Mumba said it may not be enough for Lively to apologize to Flaa as it could appear “like she’s simply jumping on the bandwagon.”

Instead, she suggested Lively offer Flaa an exclusive interview for her next project, which would give the actor an opportunity to apologize in person.

“But this could still be viewed as too little too late,” Mumba said.