Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni to lead adaptation of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us!

Los Angeles, California - BookTok favorite Colleen Hoover is getting her first screen adaptation, and the movie's leading stars have finally been revealed, with Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni heading up the star-studded project!

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni will portray Lily and Ryle in the adaptation of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us.
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni will portray Lily and Ryle in the adaptation of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us.  © Collage: Jamie McCarthy / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP & Arnold Turner / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

It Ends With Us, Hoover's 2016 novel, is hitting the big screen after a massive surge in popularity thanks to TikTok.

The story follows Lily Bloom, a recent college graduate who moves to Boston to start a flower business. She soon meets and falls for a neurosurgeon named Ryle, and the pair embark on a romance that takes a dark turn.

On Thursday, Hoover shared an exciting update with fans on TikTok, revealing the leading stars of the adaptation.

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Blake Lively will star as Lily, while Jane the Virgin star Justin Baldoni will be taking on the role of Ryle.

Baldoni's production company picked up the film the rights to the adaptation in 2019, and he has been keeping fans updated on the progress of the project since last year. The 39-year-old is set to direct the film as well.

The rest of the cast, including Lily's first love Atlas, have yet to be announced.

BookTok reacts to It Ends With Us casting

Readers shared mixed reactions to the It Ends With Us casting news.
Readers shared mixed reactions to the It Ends With Us casting news.  © Collage: Screenshot/TikTok/@xoamanda.lynn & @taytayisbae444

New of the casting, particularly Lively's involvement, took many by surprise.

As is the case with many popular books on social media, fans had grown attached to the actors "fancasted" for the roles, but the Gossip Girl alum was a welcome surprise for many.

Despite CoHo's dominance on BookTok, she certainly has her critics, and they've come out of the woodwork once again amid the trending news.

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Some readers take issue with It Ends With Us for romanticizing domestic violence, and these criticisms reached a new height when Hoover announced a coloring book inspired by the novel.

The idea of a coloring book based on a story primarily centered around abuse led many to argue that Hoover was being careless with such sensitive topics, and the Verity author then canceled the coloring book.

Still, many readers hold firm in opposing the novel and Hoover overall, leading to a flood of tweets from fans disappointed in Lively's involvement.

"colleen hoover and her nasty book coming for no other than blake lively like LEAVE MOTHER ALONE," one fan tweeted.

"not a fan of coho or her books but i love blake lively so. what now," another wrote.

Though fans likely won't get to see It Ends With Us on the big screen before the end of the year, 2023 already has quite the roster of BookTok-inspired adaptations on the way!

Cover photo: Collage: Jamie McCarthy / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP & Arnold Turner / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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