Justin Baldoni on ‘thoughtful and intentional’ care that went into ‘It Ends With Us’ film
"It Ends With Us" is out in theaters now.
The highly anticipated "It Ends With Us" film adaptation is finally here.
Fans of Colleen Hoover's bestselling novel have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Justin Baldoni-directed film since it was announced in 2019.
In an interview with "Good Morning America," Baldoni spoke about bringing Hoover's beloved story to life on the big screen, the emotional impact of making the film and how he hopes it impacts others.
"This isn't just a regular book -- this is a book that means something to so many people because it's about a real life experience that we do not talk about nearly enough," he said.
'Staying truthful to her story'
When Baldoni first read Hoover's 2016 novel, which Hoover has said is loosely inspired by her mother's own escape from abuse, he said he was "touched so deeply." The story's message of resilience and courage to break free from domestic abuse in particular affected him, he said.
"I was crying and feeling so much empathy and compassion for a situation that I personally knew nothing about," said Baldoni. "Underneath all of it was the message that inspired me to want to make this film."
"It Ends With Us" follows Lily Bloom, a young woman who has dealt with a traumatic upbringing and starts a new life and business as the owner of a flower shop in Boston. When she meets Ryle, the two quickly fall in love with each other. Soon after, Ryle's abuse begins to impact their relationship and things also escalate between the two when Lily's first love, Atlas Corrigan, reappears one day, attempting to rekindle his friendship with Lily.
In the process of optioning the book, Baldoni, who portrays Ryle in the film, said that he reached out to Hoover and the two quickly became pen-pals over email.
While he said Hoover "trusted me with this novel," Baldoni said he had his own "reservations" about directing the film and wanted to make sure that it didn't have a "male gaze." In order to do so, Baldoni said that it was important to partner with No More, a foundation dedicated to ending domestic and sexual violence.
He said there were also intimacy and stunt coordinators on set.
"They were my mentors and my friends and my partners in making sure that every step of the way, we were thoughtful and intentional with the way that anything that resembled domestic violence, or even just the storyline of [Lily and Ryle's] relationship, was portrayed," Baldoni said.
Moreover, Baldoni said that he wanted to make sure that the film captured Hoover's novel and respected her mother's story.
"I'd always told her that this was for her," Baldoni said. "It was everything -- staying truthful to her story, I think, gives so many women the opportunity to have their stories told and be seen on that screen."
Finding the perfect Lily and protecting her
For the role of Lily, Baldoni wanted to make sure he could find an actress who "could really protect her."
He said he found that in actress Blake Lively.
"She felt so approachable and she's so aspirational to so many women, but when you meet her, she kind of disarms you," Baldoni said about his initial three-hour conversation with Lively. "She's charming, she's sparkly."
Lively became an integral part of the film, he said -- not only as Lily, but also as a producer and in assisting in creative aspects of the film like costume design, art direction and more.
"She had her hands on every aspect of this production, and everything she touched, she improved," Baldoni said of Lively.
In bringing Lily's story to the big screen, Baldoni said that he wanted to put special care into how Lily and Ryle's relationship was portrayed and he "had to be intentional every step of the way."
"You don't have the luxury of going into her mind and understanding or seeing this romance unfold the way it unfolds in the book," he said.
Describing the creative choices they opted to use to portray Lily and Ryle's relationship, Baldoni said that the film centered on using "recovered memories as the narrative backbone."
"We did it as a departure from the original book, but in order to protect Lily and to also show what so many women experience."
"The audience catches up at a pivotal point in the movie to Lily, at a time when she can no longer run or escape from the reality that she's in an unhealthy abusive relationship," he added.
On fan reactions and buzz around the film
During the filming process, fans of the novel were quick to comment on elements of the film, like the casting and costume designs, after catching glimpses of Lively and Baldoni in paparazzi photos as Lily and Ryle. Baldoni said he welcomed it all and said it "didn't really affect the process."
"It's a good thing that fans are commenting," he said. "I got some sage advice early on. When you're adapting a beloved novel, you're never going to please everybody, but the fact that they're talking about it means they care."
"The book helped thousands and thousands and thousands of women leave these relationships," he added. "I know far too many women who have been sexually assaulted or abused. That number is way too high, and there's a reason that they care, and I just want them to know I care too."
"It Ends With Us" also stars Brandon Sklenar as Atlas, Hasan Minhaj as Marshall and Jenny Slate as Allysa. Isabela Ferrer plays a young Lily in the film and Alex Neustaedter plays a young Atlas.
The film is out in theaters now.
If you need help or need help supporting someone else, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.