If you haven’t heard of the popular book It Ends With Us, then you probably haven’t been on TikTok, which is a good thing. Keep it up! The novel became a BookTok favorite in 2021 and now a big-screen adaptation starring Blake Lively is heading to theaters, just weeks after her husband Ryan Reynolds dominated the box office. Keep that in mind for now.
The story centers on a young florist named Lily Bloom (really) and her tumultuous relationship with Ryle (pronounced like Kyle with an R, just in case you weren’t aware), played by Justin Baldoni. Baldoni both starred and directed the film.
There is a sequel to the novel, aptly titled It Starts With Us, which has not been confirmed for its own big-screen adaptation, but should it come to fruition, Baldoni thinks that Lively is ready to direct on her own.
Entertainment Tonight asked Baldoni if he would return for a sequel, he had someone else in mind. “I think that there are better people for that one. I think Blake Lively’s ready to direct, that’s what I think,” he said. It’s an interesting comment about someone who has only one director’s credit (for a Taylor Swift music video, no less), but maybe she’s been inspired by her husband, Ryan Reynolds, who apparently contributed to It Ends With Us.
Lively told E! News that Reynolds was definitely involved, and even contributed a vial scene. She explained, “The iconic rooftop scene, my husband actually wrote it. Nobody knows that, but you now … He works on everything I do. I work on everything he does. So his wins, his celebrations are mine and mine are his.” Note that Reynolds is not credited as a writer or producer on this film, but it seems like the husband and wife duo trade ideas often.
What does Baldoni think? He’s just here to celebrate the movie! “This isn’t my night — this is a night for all the women who we made this movie for,” Baldoni told ET. “This is a night for Blake, this is a night for Colleen [Hoover]. I’m just so grateful that we’re here, five years in the making.” Unfortunately, they did not make a flower-shaped popcorn bucket for this movie, but you might still enjoy it.
It Ends With Us is now in theaters.