Good news, CoHo clan and It Ends With Us fans! Blake Lively and Colleen Hoover said that the adaptation of the bestselling 2016 novel will be true to the book. The actress and author opened the Book Bonanza event in Grapevine, Texas along with It Ends With Us costar Brandon Skelnar.
During a conversation moderated by Entertainment Tonight, Lively, 36, said that regardless of whether you read the book first or see the movie first, you’re bound to like both.
“If you read the book first, I really genuinely believe, and I don’t normally promise this, but I believe that you’ll love this movie,” Lively said.
“And then if you see the movie first and then you read the book, you’ll love the book. And I think that that’s that’s the goal of it and I hope that we can accomplish that.”
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The A Simple Favor actress also spoke about how many details need to be included when adapting a book into a movie.
“When you’re making a movie, there’s all these elements and there’s just so many factors and so many things come your way and then you add to it that there’s a book on top of it and sometimes things slip in the cracks,” she said.
One example was the significance of the character Lily’s hollow heart tattoo and the importance of thinking through those details.
“To honor what you guys love about the story is very important to [Colleen] and, and to be true to that, we’re gonna try to do it all right,” Lively continued, praising how meticulous Hoover, 44, was in making sure the movie stayed true to form.
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“Thank goodness she doesn’t let anything fall to the ground,” Lively said.
Hoover agreed with her, noting at one point that, as co-executive producers, she and Lively “have to keep an eye on things. And get the details right.”
Hoover acknowledged the stress of adapting the book into a movie, but also called it “the best thing that ever happened,” noting that it has been in the works for several years.
“To actually finally see it happening and happening so soon and the fact that I am so genuinely excited for y’all to see it because they did the book such justice, that’s what I’m excited about,” she said.
“‘Cause as a reader first, you know, we want those movies to reflect the books that we write,” she added. “And so I think y’all are gonna be very happy when it comes out.”
It Ends With Us will be in theaters starting Aug. 9, 2024.