All the differences between the movie vs book versions of It Ends With Us

Currently in theaters and all set to arrive on Netflix after December 7 (US), It Ends With Us which stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni has become a hot topic of discussion. Based on Colleen Hoover’s Booktok sensation of the same name, book lovers had high expectations for the film adaptation. It’s no secret that the significant ageing of the characters has sparked widespread debate among book readers since the announcement of the movie. However, that wasn’t the only change we noticed while watching the film. Here are all the major changes we noticed within the movie vs book for It Ends With Us.

Trigger Warning: This article contains topics of domestic violence.

Spoilers ahead!

The bestselling book follows the journey of Lily Bloom (played by Blake Lively) as she explores love and breaks the cycle of violence. Inspired by her parents’ lives, Hoover penned an emotionally charged story about a young girl who finds herself in an abusive relationship and how she overcomes it. Fortunately, she has the support of her childhood love, who helps her through these trying times.

The movie has received mixed reviews from viewers. The lack of chemistry between Lively and Baldoni, the dry dialogue delivery, and the abrupt scene changes have all taken away from the emotional impact of the written words that inspired it. Book readers are also furious with how the film was marketed as a fun romantic movie that girls should go see while wearing florals, even though it deals with heavy themes like domestic violence. The controversy surrounding Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s rumoured beef is also stirring up some hot drama in Hollywood. So, let’s get into the major changes that differentiate the It Ends With Us movie from the original book.

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It Ends With Us movie vs the book: What are the changes between the screen adaptation and Colleen Hoover’s words?

The character’s ages

In the book, Lily is twenty-three, while Atlas is about two years older than her, which makes him 25; additionally, Ryle is twenty-nine. However, in the movie, all the characters are in their mid-30s. Even though the readers weren’t exactly happy, director/actor Justin Baldoni said, “I wanted women of all ages to be able to see themselves, and ageing up the characters, I think, really helps it become a universal story, and it takes it out of the YA genre.”

The author Colleen Hoover also showed her support for the decision saying “As an author, we make mistakes,” she said. “There’s no 28-year-old neurosurgeons, you know? You go to school for 15 years. And so to make corrections to what I messed up in the book, we aged the characters up somewhat.”

The opening scene

In the book, the opening scene finds Lily sitting on the rooftop ledge of a building she doesn’t live in after her father’s funeral. It is here that she bumps into a frustrated but handsome neurosurgeon, Ryle Kincaid. In contrast, the movie opens with a scene of Lily driving to her childhood home for her father’s funeral.

The ‘naked truths’

One of the most beautiful bonding moments between Lily and Ryle in the book was how they felt so at ease with one other from their very first meeting. They freely expressed their ‘naked truths’ or unaltered thoughts without any hesitation. The phrase is mentioned vaguely in the film, but it doesn’t have the impact it had in the novel.

Lily talking about her father with Ryle

Lily was not the only victim of domestic violence in the story; her mother suffered a similar fate. In the book, Lily tells Ryle about her abusive father on the first night on the rooftop. However, in the movie version of It Ends With Us, Lily does not tell Ryle about her abusive father until after their first devastating incident. When Ryle and Lily go to Atlas’s restaurant for dinner with Allyssa and Marshall, Atlas becomes upset when he sees Lily’s scar and the bandage on Ryle’s hands. As Lily tries to calm Ryle down, she explains the problem and tells him about her father.

Absent characters

Not all the characters from the book made it to the screen. In the book, Lily had a roommate named Lucy whom she later hires as a help for her flower shop. She also has a gay friend Devin who pretends to be her date at Allysa’s birthday party to make Ryle jealous. However, these characters do not make it into the on-screen adaptation. Ryle’s parents also do not feature in the movie.

Proposal scene

One of the most significant changes in the It Ends With Us movie vs the book was Ryle’s proposal to Lily and their wedding. In the book, after a few months of dating, Ryle overhears Allysa and Lily discussing how she will marry him that night. Hearing her, Ryle asks her to marry that very same night. On a whim, they all pack their bags, travel to Las Vegas, and marry.

However, in the film, Ryle proposes to Lily in the hospital after Allyssa has given birth. Marshall even officiates the wedding. So, even though their wedding was rushed, it did not have the same effect as eloping to Vegas at night.

Ryle’s childhood trauma

Ryle accidentally killed his brother Emerson as a kid while playing with their parents’ gun. The incident scarred him for life, and he was never the same afterwards. But how the incident shapes the story is very different in the book and the movie.

In the book, Lily asks Ryle to leave the house after he harms her for the second time. The next day, Allysa requests Lily to listen to her brother one more time before making a decision. Ryle describes his childhood trauma to her and begs for help. He decides to address his anger issues, and Lily gives him another chance. However, in the film, Lily asks Allysa about her brother, she tells her the story, and they simply leave it there.

Lily’s determination not to become a victim like her mother after the second attack is skipped in the movie. Also notably absent is Ryle’s attempt to change and control his anger.

Lily’s Ellen journals

In the book, teenager Lily loves Ellen DeGeneres and writes to her in her journals. The journals are crucial to the story in the book as Lily and Atlas’ teenage love story is also written within those journal entries. In these journals, it is revealed that the two used to watch The Ellen Show together, with Lily even giving her daughter the middle name ‘Dory’ after Ellen’s character in Finding Nemo. Ryle even gets to know about Lily’s tattoo and the Boston magnet from the journals.

In the movie, the journals are barely shown and any mention of Ellen DeGeneres is completely omitted.

Atlas rescuing Lily

In the book, after Ryle assaults Lily for the third time, a scared and tearful Lily calls Atlas and asks him to get her out of their apartment. But in the movie, Lily goes to Atlas’ restaurant instead, and he takes her to the hospital.

Atlas’s restaurant name

Atlas’s restaurant name in the book is Bib’s as in ‘Better in Boston’ — A phrase Atlas and Lily wholeheartedly believe. However, in the movie, his restaurant’s name is ‘Roots’, which pays homage to a conversation Lily and Atlas has about the importance of strong roots.

(Main and featured image: itendswithusmovie/Instagram)