It Ends With Us’ 13 Biggest Book Changes

This article contains discussions of domestic violence, abuse, and rape.

MAJOR SPOILERS for It Ends With Us are ahead!

Summary

• The movie adaptation of It Ends With Us corrects flaws in the source material, like age changes and a stronger ending.
• The film shows more red flags with Ryle’s behavior before the abuse, making his manipulative actions clearer.
• Lily’s character in the movie is more relatable, as she doesn’t threaten to leave after the first incident of abuse.

The movie adaptation of It Ends With Us makes significant changes to Colleen Hoover’s book, like Ryle’s behavior before the abuse starts and the co-parenting ending, which strengthens the themes and corrects flaws in the source material. When a movie adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s controversial 2016 book was announced, there were two main reactions – excitement and skepticism. There was natural concern that the movie would remain too faithful to the book, incorporating problematic and questionable elements of the source material.

However, director/star Jason Baldoni, screenwriter Christy Hall, and the rest of the creative team behind the movie clearly put a lot of attention into staying faithful to the story while making necessary changes. Though the premise and characters from Colleen Hoover’s book remain the same, the movie adaptation of It Ends With Us makes huge changes to the source material in order to rectify problematic elements and improve the core messages about abuse.

13 It Ends With Us Ages Up The Characters

The It Ends With Us Main Characters Are In Their Late 30s

It Ends With Us book fans were upset with Blake Lively’s casting as Lily Bloom because the character is only 23 years old in the source material. Additionally, Ryle Kincaid is 30 years old, and Atlas Corrigan is 26 years old. However, the movie drastically shifts the ages of the characters in It Ends With Us. Though the movie never explicitly states the ages of any of the characters, they appear to be in their late 30s instead.

The age change was made with the support of author Colleen Hoover because she didn’t realize how long neurosurgeons go to school. The older characters also shift the story out of the YA and New Adult genre, making it more appealing and relatable to a wider audience. It also decreases the likelihood that the abuse will be romanticized since that’s a rampant issue in YA.

12 The Movie Shows Lily And Ryle Getting Closer

It Ends With Us Sets Up A Foundation For Their Relationship

Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us doesn’t do a good job of showing the positive relationship between Lily and Ryle before it turns abusive. There’s plenty of sexual intimacy, but she doesn’t offer many instances of emotional intimacy. The lack of examples makes it harder to understand when Lily says later on that she’s thinking about the good times together. Luckily, the movie adaptation’s clever use of montages provides viewers with specific examples of positive memories Lily and Ryle share.

This narrative change earlier in the movie improves the story in two ways. Firstly, the contrast between the affectionate moments and abuse gives the latter a stronger emotional impact. Secondly, the good times make it easier to understand why Lily doesn’t just leave when Ryle starts abusing her.

11 Ryle Shows More Red Flags In The Movie

Ryle Is More Controlling And Coercive Before The First Incident Of Physical Abuse

Before he starts physically abusing Lily in the book, Ryle is by no means a saint. He does things like picking her up against her will or showing up at her apartment uninvited. However, the red flags are much fewer in the book than they are in the movie. In the movie adaptation of It Ends With Us, Lily directly tells Ryle twice to stop flirting with her, showing up, giving her gifts, and following her around. He refuses. He also questions her when she says she wants to stop having sex instead of listening to her.

Later in the movie, he has an angry expression on his face when he learns that Lily’s mom is coming to town. He uses this moment to tell her that he loves her for the first time, making his statement manipulative. Even the timing of him proposing to Lily feels extremely controlling. The fact that Ryle shows so many red flags prior to her meeting Atlas again is just a reminder that he isn’t the reason Ryle is abusive.

10 Lily Doesn’t Say She’s Going To Leave Ryle After The First Incident

Lily Isn’t The “Perfect Victim” Who Can Walk Away Easily In The Movie

From the first incident of overt physical abuse in Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us, Lily tells Ryle that she’s not going to be like her mother. She assures him that even though she forgives him the first time, she will leave him if he becomes abusive with her again. Unfortunately, her statements about leaving risk undermining the story by making leaving seem easier than it is. Leaving an abusive relationship is dangerous and hard. Luckily, the movie adaptation ditches this aspect of the book.

Lily never threatens to leave Ryle in the movie version of It Ends With Us, making it more impactful when she finally takes that step. She isn’t painted as this superwoman who recognizes the abuse immediately and takes action. By giving her a more conventional storyline, it’s easier to relate to Lily’s story.

If you or someone you love is being abused please call the national domestic violence hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or visit
thehotline.org

9 The Movie (Mostly) Removes The Ellen References

It Ends With Us Avoids Referencing The Controversial Comedian

Throughout Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us, Lily writes letters to Ellen DeGeneres, watches her talk show, and becomes obsessed with the movie Finding Nemo. Unfortunately, this part of the book aged poorly due to the 2020 allegations over the past four years about DeGenres’ racism, toxic workplace, and intimidation. Luckily, Ellen DeGeneres is only referenced twice in the entire movie.

The first time, she’s writing a letter to Ellen in a journal, but the page is only visible for two seconds and never mentioned aloud. The second time, Atlas comes over, and Lily is watching the Ellen Show. Again, this only appears on screen for a moment. According to screenwriter and producer Christy Hall, the choice had nothing to do with the controversy (via Business Insider). Regardless of the reason, this choice is for the best.

8 The Movie Fixes The Statutory Rape Issue

Lily And Atlas Are Closer To The Same Age

While it isn’t the most controversial element of the book, it’s uncomfortable that Atlas asks about Lily’s sixteenth birthday and comes back to have sex with her on that day despite being nineteen. The subtext comes across like he planned that the entire time, which makes the statutory rape even ickier. However, the movie makes it seem like Lily and Atlas are the same age.

The actors who play the It Ends With Us characters Young Lily Bloom (Isabella Ferrer) and Young Atlas Corrigan (Alex Neustaedter) are only one and a half years apart, instead of three years apart like the characters in the book. Visually, Neustaedter and Ferrer look the same age. The fact that he’s early in his senior year makes it seem like Atlas is seventeen instead of almost nineteen. This makes the two having sex less uncomfortable to watch.

7 Lily Doesn’t Try To Stab Her Father In The Movie

Lily Watches The Rape But Freezes Up

A significant moment in It Ends With Us’ flashbacks shows Lily grabbing a knife and trying to stab her father when she sees him raping her mother. Atlas physically picks her up and takes her back to the bedroom. While it’s easy to understand Lily’s urge, the action doesn’t fit with the rest of her character. She typically hides and pretends nothing happened instead of acting violently. The movie adaptation takes out the attempted stabbing part of the story.

Lily still sees her father raping her mother, and those flashbacks are intercut with Ryle attempting to rape Lily. The change makes the parallels between these rape scenes all the more impactful and difficult to watch. Just like Lily’s mom didn’t have someone to save her from Andrew Bloom, Lily doesn’t have anyone to save her from Ryle during the rape scene.

6 Ryle Doesn’t Have “Blackouts”

Ryle Is In Control When He Abuses Lily

One of the most problematic parts of the depiction of abuse in Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us is the fact that Ryle explains his incidents of abuse away as “blackouts.” He says he has no control over these episodes, but he lies in wait to rape Lily in the third incident, proving the abuse isn’t him uncontrollably snapping. As such, it was a relief to see that they dropped the concept of him blacking out entirely.

Instead, Ryle seemingly recalls every incident of abuse and makes a concerted effort to gaslight Lily in the movie adaptation. This better reflects the cycle and the cause of abuse outlined in the book Domestic Violence (via National Library of Medicine). The traumatic backstory still makes him nuanced, but there’s a degree of removal between this and the abuse itself.

5 Ryle Calls And Texts Lily After The Attempted Rape In The Movie

Ryle Harasses Lily While Trying To Get Her Back

Another issue with Ryle in the book is the fact that he’s painted as the “good guy abuser” who respects Lily’s boundaries, stays away from her, doesn’t contact her, and doesn’t manipulate her. This simply isn’t realistic. The first 18 months after leaving an abusive partner is the most dangerous time for a victim (via JBWS). Ryle is also shown crossing her boundaries repeatedly before the first incident of physical abuse. There’s no reason to believe that he would actually leave Lily alone.

The producers, screenwriter, and the organization No More – who consulted on the film – seemed to realize the issue with this portrayal because they changed the way Ryle interacted with Lily after the attempted rape. He’s shown calling her and sending her multiple texts in a row over a short period of time. This change feels much more realistic.

4 The Rape Scene Is Less Graphic

The Rape Scene Omits The Digital Penetration And Hair Pulling

One of the best parts of Colleen Hoover’s book is the way she writes the abuse scenes. These scenes feel extremely realistic, raw, and terrifying. However, the detail with which she describes the incidents of abuse posed a problem for the movie. Because of the visual medium and It Ends With Us’ PG-13 rating, the filmmakers needed to evoke the same emotions without crossing the line. It could be too difficult to watch everything that happens in the book.

Rather than graphically depicting the rape in the movie, the scenes use close-ups, implied circumstances, dialogue, and cutaways to make clear what’s happening without showing everything. However, it should be noted that, even without the penetration or hair-pulling from the book, the scene is still challenging to watch and can trigger abuse survivors.

3 Lily, Emerson, and Jenny Bloom Go To Andrew Bloom’s Grave

The Bloom Women Get Closure In It Ends With Us

In Colleen Hoover’s book, Lily’s mom finally admits towards the end that she admires Lily for having said nothing good about her father at the funeral. This reconciliation is deeply meaningful because it shows that Jenny Bloom starts understanding the repercussions of Andrew’s abuse. However, the movie adds in another meaningful scene after that which gives Lily and her mom a sense of closure.

Lily, Jenny, and Emerson go to the grave, where Lily leaves the napkin containing her blank eulogy. The women hug and walk away, showing that they are leaving the trauma of their past behind them. This furthers the overarching theme of breaking the cycle of abuse so that the next generation can thrive. After three (and possibly more) generations, the Bloom women will no longer be defined by the men who hurt them.

2 The Movie Shows The Period Between Lily Giving Birth And Meeting Atlas Again

Lily Starts Recovering From The Abuse

The end of Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us includes a time jump of about a year. Atlas and Lily haven’t seen each other for a year and a half at that point, but they accidentally bump into each other on the street. The only context for the past year is Lily’s internal narration. Rather than Lily giving exposition, the end of the movie adaptation includes a montage of the time between Lily giving birth and her meeting Atlas again.

During this time, she works at the flower shop, laughs with Allysa, plays in the park with Emerson, and spends time with her mom. There’s a noticeable shift in the way she looks and acts. When she finally leaves Ryle, she appears hollow, like her soul has been ripped away. The scenes during the year gap show that Lily recovers from the abuse and recaptures the spark of life that she lost.

1 Lily Doesn’t Co-Parent With Ryle

Ryle Has No Part In Emerson’s Life

The biggest and most meaningful change happens at the end of It Ends With Us. In the book, Lily co-parents with Ryle despite the fact that he abused her. The second book, It Starts With Us, reveals that she didn’t report the abuse or fight to take his visitation rights away. Lily’s decision to co-parent with Ryle at the end of the book caused major controversy because it was seen as endangerment of her child. Ryle’s ending also weakens the impact of her finally leaving, since she still has to interact with her abuser on a regular basis.

Luckily, director and star Jason Baldoni intentionally changed Ryle’s ending in It Ends With Us to avoid making the character an outlier who never abuses anyone again. They relied heavily on the guidance of No More to keep It Ends With Us as accurate and sensitive as possible, and this greatly paid off, providing a more meaningful ending.

Sources:National Library of Medicine and JBWS