[Editor’s note: The following article contains spoilers for “ It Ends with Us .”] Much has been said of the tense dynamic between “It Ends with Us” star Blake Lively and director and co-star Justin Baldoni . Making a film surrounding domestic abuse could theoretically strain the relationship between a cast and crew, but in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly , Baldoni spoke about the collaborative spirit he worked to foster on set.
He claimed that from the start of the journey, working with screenwriter Christy Hall to adapt Colleen Hoover’s bestseller , his intentions were only ever focused on protecting the characters being explored, particularly Lively’s character, Lily Bloom. As previously explained by IndieWire , in the book version of “It Ends with Us,” main character Lily is quick to acknowledge that each act of violence against her by husband Ryle is abuse. But in the film, these actions are less definitive, being treated more like accidents or mishaps than intentional.
It isn’t until Ryle tries to rape Lily that she actually recognizes the situation for what it is. “This is a movie about love, and about hope, and about empowerment, and the ability that each of us have to make a different choice,” Baldoni said . “In thinking about that, and what the theme of this movie is about, and what this book is about, I had to find a way to make sure that we were never judging Lily, and we were protecting her character arc, at all costs.
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