Trouble is brewing in Romancelandia. The film adaptation of It Ends With Us, Colleen Hoover's 2016 bestseller, is currently shooting in New York City. The first set photos of stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have hit social media, and fans of the beloved romance novel don't like what they see — with one TikToker calling the casting and costuming choices "offensive to the book."
Gossip Girl alum Blake Lively, 35, leads the film as the 23-year-old Lily Bloom, who moves to Boston fresh out of college and enters into an abusive relationship with 30-year-old Doctor Ryle Kincaid. Jane the Virgin breakout Justin Baldoni, 39, will star as Ryle in addition to directing the film. 1923 star Brandon Sklenar will play Atlas, the childhood flame with whom Lily reconnects.
Lively's casting received heavy criticism when it was announced in January 2023, with fans claiming that the 35-year-old mother of four is an odd choice for the 23-year-old heroine. New behind-the-scenes photos of Lively in costume — donning Lily's signature red hair and an eclectic mix of pink biker jackets, droopy flannels and cargo pants — have only turned them off the adaptation:
"I love Blake Lively. I love her so much. But this is not Lily Bloom. This is not Lily Bloom," TikToker Nique Coleman says in a video that's garnered over 156k likes. "Most of us were already not thrilled with this casting, but this is just kind of confirming the fears."
@niquecoleman our first look at blake lively & justin baldoni on the set of it ends with us! #blakelively #blakelivelyedit #itendswithus #itendswithusbook #itendswithusmovie #ryanreynolds #justinbaldoni #colleenhoover #coho #rylekincaid #lilybloom #booktok #iewu #popculturenews
Lively can be seen wearing an ankle-length brown dress topped with a tied pink t-shirt and hot pink jacket, paired with loafers and slouchy patterned socks. In other images taken from set, the actress sports raspberry-colored cargo pants, a patchwork-style jacket and a brown beanie. For his part, Baldoni appears to be keeping it low-key as Ryle, wearing a simple black sweater.
Blake Lively in costume as Lily Bloom in It Ends With Us. (Nancy Rivera/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
"The fact that there is a costume department out there putting her in outfits like this is offensive," Coleman continued in a second video. "It's offensive to her, it's offensive to the book. It's offensive to Colleen Hoover, frankly."
Other TikTok users chimed in with their thoughts, with one writing, "I genuinely didn't think it was possible for Blake lively to look bad in any outfit...they did her SO DIRTY," and another sharing their fan-casting dreams: "I seriously feel like Sadie Sink would of been a better Lily Bloom."
Author Colleen Hoover, who executive produces the film alongside Lively and Baldoni, has been outspoken in her support of Lively and Baldoni. "Our Lily is going to be played by Blake Lively! Blake Lively y'all! She's my dream Lily," Hoover beamed in a January Instagram video. "I think Justin and Blake have what it takes to bring these characters to life and I cannot wait for you guys to see that happen."
But It Ends With Us fans on BookTok are having a hard time believing that Lively, in particular, is a good fit for Lily. TikToker Victoria Alario posted videos she obtained while watching the project being filmed outside her apartment. Alario claims that a production worker said that Lively will be playing a thirty-something version of Lily.
@victoria.alario Replying to @madisonlynn13 I WATCHED THEM FILM IT ENDS WITH US #itendswithus #blakelively #justinbaldoni #colleenhoover #fyp #itstartswithus #greenscreenvideo #greenscreen #tea #lilybloom #rylekincaid #gossipgirl
"Blake is not playing a 22-year-old girl. She's playing pretty much her own age, and she's going to be in her early thirties," Alario recalled of their conversation, noting that an aged-up Lily would significantly impact the story. "Have you read the book? Because I'm pretty sure her age was really relevant to the story because she's like a vulnerable younger girl, like out of college."
Some fans are speculating that the film adaptation will feature two Lily Blooms: Lively's older version, and a younger version more true to the source material. In April, Baldoni announced on Instagram that the movie had cast its "young Lily," but didn't provide the name of the actress chosen for the role. It remains unclear whether young Lily will be featured solely in flashback scenes or whether the film will give equal screen time to each time period.
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