Justin Baldoni Says Gina Rodriguez 'Really Showed Up For Me' amid "It Ends With Us" Drama: 'Family Forever' (Exclusive)
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10/24/2024 01:37 PM
Rodriguez talked to PEOPLE in September about her enduring bond with Baldoni, and the actor says that her comments "meant a lot"
Eric Charbonneau/Getty
Justin Baldoni, Gina Rodriguez at the premiere of 'Miss Bala' on Jan. 30, 2019Justin Baldoni and Gina Rodriguez continue to show up for each other — and it matters.
In September, Rodriguez gushed about her former Jane the Virgincostar in an interview with PEOPLE, calling Baldoni "my brother forever" as she said he is "hands down the person I stay in touch with the most" from the show.
The interview reached Baldoni, 40, who tells PEOPLE, "You know what? That came at a very special time for me and that meant a lot."
"She really showed up for me," he says of Rodriguez, 40. "That was really sweet."
Rodriguez's interview came as Baldoni's headline-making It Ends With Us press cycle was winding down, which saw rumors of an alleged rift between him and costar Blake Lively emerge as well as reports circulating of creative differences behind the scenes.
"That was really sweet," he says of the love Rodriguez shared. "She's a sweetheart. She's family forever."
The pair worked together on Jane the Virgin as on-again-off-again love interests Jane Villanueva and Rafael Solano, who were brought together when Jane was accidentally artificially inseminated with Rafael's sperm, and Baldoni says they "for sure" will work together again sometime soon.
"I'd love to work with her. She's so talented," he says. "I hope it's a movie that she directs. She's a fantastic director, so I would love to act in something that she directs."
"People don't realize how gifted she really is also behind the scenes. She's a real filmmaker," Baldoni — who partnered with Purina Dog Chow for this year's NY Dog Film Festival to select the winner of the new "Service Dog Salute" category — continues.
As for whether that might mean there's hope of a Jane the Virgin reunion of sorts, he isn't saying no. "We've got to do a reunion at some point."
Courtesy of Dog Chow
Justin Baldoni and Purina Dog Chow spotlight service dogs at the 9th Annual NY Dog Film Festival, highlighting powerful stories of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) service dogs and the positive impact they've made on veterans' lives.Looking back on the show, Rodriguez told PEOPLE she feels "old" knowing that it premiered 10 years ago.
"That's the first thing that comes to mind. The second thing that comes to mind is: I want to do a reunion. I freaking loved that experience so much, and those people, and that show was so cool. That show was so different. That show was just so unique."
Patrick Wymore/The CW
Gina Rodriguez as Jane and Justin Baldoni as Rafael in Jane The Virgin"Every moment was perfect," she continued. "Even in the hardships, even in the difficulties, even when we were doing 16 hours a day, even when it was just bleeding me dry of energy and life, and I would miss birthday parties and Christmases and vacations with family, and I would miss everything... I just made sure that I appreciated why I was missing all those things, and I did."
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Jane the Virgin can be streamed in full on Netflix.
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