Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel “It Ends With Us” makes its highly anticipated big screen debut in Philippine cinemas today, August 7, with Blake Lively starring in the lead role.
Lively says she felt the same when she first learned about Hoover’s No. 1 New York Bestseller.
“I saw a window display of her books — Colleen Hoover, Colleen Hoover, Colleen Hoover,” recalls Lively, who also serves as a producer on the film. “Her name was everywhere. She speaks to an audience — her voice resonates with people. The stories she tells and how she tells them reach out and grab so many people.”
Blake Lively stars as Lily Bloom in ‘It Ends with Us.’ PHOTO COURTESY OF COLUMBIA PICTURES
Lively portrays Lily Bloom, a young woman who strives to break free from her past. As Lily falls in love, she discovers she is repeating the same patterns she grew up with.
“I just fell in love with Lily,” Lively says. I wanted to tell her story because her emotional roadmap was so clear to me, yet there are so many ways she could be portrayed. I knew if I took her on, I would make sure she wasn’t a delicate flower but a woman with both feet firmly on the ground — someone in her skin.”
Hoover believes Lively embodies the essence of Lily Bloom. “Blake has many of the same qualities I admire in both Lily and my mother,” the author notes. “To have her playing Lily demonstrates that each situation is unique. There’s no mold to fit.”
Lively explains how she decided on her interpretation of Lily — one that reflects strength and resilience. “Lily is not a wilting lily,” she adds. “She has both feet on the ground and her head screwed on tight — she has real spice and agency. But you can be a woman with confidence and agency and know better, but you still do not see all of the red flags that you should.”
Portraying Lily’s journey was a rewarding challenge for the actress. “Lily’s at a turning point in her life. She’s just moved to Boston from her hometown in New England and is actualizing her dream of opening a flower shop. A major life event at the start of the movie brings up her past in significant ways. While coping with that, she meets someone she falls for almost instantly and finds herself at the center of a complex emotional journey.”
“It Ends With Us” follows Lily Bloom as she overcomes a traumatic childhood to start a new life in Boston, chasing her dream of opening her own business. A chance meeting with neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni) sparks a deep connection, but as their relationship unfolds, Lily begins to see sides of Ryle that remind her of her parents’ troubled relationship. When her first love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar), reenters her life, Lily must rely on her strength to make a crucial choice for her future.
Directed by Justin Baldoni and produced by Alex Saks, Jamey Heath, Blake Lively, and Christy Hall, the film also stars Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Amy Morton, and Brandon Sklenar. The screenplay is by Christy Hall, based on Hoover’s novel.
Distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, the local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International, “It Ends With Us” opens in cinemas today.
Be the first to comment