Big news for Colleen Hoover fans. Blake Lively posted on Instagram that she ditched her blonde locks for dark red because she’s been cast as Lily Bloom in Hoover’s upcoming movie adaptation of It Ends With Us, the New York Times bestselling novel. The Gossip Girl actress will star opposite Justin Baldoni, who will play Ryle Kincaid and who also developed the movie script with Hoover, according to Variety. Fans now want to know who'll play the teenage Lily, Atlas Corrigan, and Lily's best friend, Allysa Kincaid. Sony Pictures has yet to set a movie release date.
Hoover has struck a chord with female readers with 25 romance thrillers filled with heart-wrenching suspense, passionate scenes, and emotional roller coaster rides. The Texas author is giving Delia Owens (author of Where the Crawdads Sing) a run for her money with more NYT bestsellers, including the creepy 2018 tale Verity (76 weeks), the painful 2014 love story Ugly Love (78 weeks) and most recently the No. 1 bestseller of 2022, It Starts With Us, the prequel to It Ends With Us.
'It Ends With Us'
Hoover recently announced her excitement about Lively's and Baldoni's casting on Instagram, saying to fans, "We have a cast! And I’m going to tell you who our Ryle and Lily are." Hoover’s novel IEWU is written from the perspective of Lily, who struggles with halting the cycle of domestic abuse and struggles with her two love interests, Ryle and Atlas.
Lily's IEWU story was inspired by Hoover’s upbringing in Texas. In the Instagram video, she says, “I just want everyone to know how appreciative I am of my mother who got us out of a scary situation when I was little… So, thank you mom, for making that difficult decision.”
Lily Bloom, the Protagonist
IEWU begins with Lily Bloom graduating from college and moving to Boston to start her dream small business. This character, described as having beautiful red hair, opens a unique floral shop after inheriting her family's money when her father passes away. But, she falls for an arrogant yet good-looking neurosurgeon, Ryle, who later reminds her of her abusive father. The NYT describes the plot as “a battered wife raised in a violent home attempts to halt the cycle of abuse.”
Even though Lively landed the part, last year's fan casting for Lily included Josephine Langford, Abigail Cowen, Sadie Sink, Holland Roden, and Katherine McNamara, according to a poll from mycast.io.
Adult Lily Played by Blake Lively
Regardless of fan casting, Lively has proven she is a "consistently capable and underrated performer." One of her best performances was in the Age of Adaline, where she convincingly played a young woman who lived through the 1940s to the present without ever aging.
According to Variety, Lively is actively involved in Hoover's movie project, where she plays not only the starring role but also the executive producer alongside Hoover, Steve Sarowitz, Andrew Calof, and Baldoni.
Sadie Sink as a Possible Teenage Lily
Naturally, millions of fans are excited about the film adaptation of this not-so-innocent romance story about Lily, a Boston floral shop owner who falls for the conflicted yet charmingly handsome surgeon. But what about Lily's story when she was an outcast teenager and fell for Atlas Corrigan, the homeless child she helped? Many fans say Sadie Sink would be perfect for the role. Sink, a Texan like Hoover, has been praised for her recent raw performance in The Whale as Ellie, the angry, neglected teenage daughter of an obese college professor, played by Brendan Fraser.
Sink would be a good fit as she has played these memorable dramatic teen roles in The Whale and the Netflix sci-fi series Stranger Things. For example, in Stranger Things, her character Max continuously suffers at the hands of others, including her adrift alcoholic mother and series villain Vecna. These characters have given Sink the needed experience to persevere as the teenage Lily who confronts her angry father in IEWU.
Abigail Cowen as a Possible Teenage Lily
Who else could play Lily as a teenager? Abigail Cowen is a talented young actor who, like Sink, got her first break in Stranger Things. In Fate: The Winx Saga, Cowen plays Bloom Peters, who deals with life in the Otherworld and has to control her dangerous magical powers.
Mycast.io user kenadiernst had said, “Abigail Cowen was born for this role (Lily).” Even though Cowen and Sink both have red hair, the reason for their fan casting as a teen Lily in IEWU is because they are both gifted, confident actors with a lot of experience in dramatic roles dealing with powers against them, just like Lily's controlling father and husband.
Lily’s Romantic Interests
Ryle Played by Justin Baldoni
Ryle Kincaid is the assertive and arrogant surgeon who first meets Lily on a rooftop in Boston after performing a difficult surgery. They both talk candidly about their recent heartbreaking experiences, and sparks fly. Ryle states he has a no-dating rule but falls quickly for Lily, who refuses to be on a one-night stand. Ryle suffers from childhood PTSD and, unbeknownst to Lily, has a bad temper.
The actor to play this role obviously has to be strikingly handsome. Baldoni, known as playing Rafael on Jane the Virgin, should be perfect for the part. According to the mycast.io poll, Baldoni was fan-cast as Ryle and other well-known dashing actors, including Theo James and Henry Cavill. Like Lively, Baldoni not only has a leading role, but he'll help produce the film, according to a recent report from USA Today’s Amy Haneline. Hoover announced to her fans last year on Facebook about meeting with Baldoni and her plans to turn the novel into a movie: "After meeting with @justinbaldoni and his amazing @wayfarerstudios team (today) and seeing how much effort they’ve put into this script and into WANTING to give readers what they want, I’m confident you are all going to be very happy."
Fan Casting Dylan O'Brien as Atlas
Atlas Corrigan is Lily’s first love and is linked to a horrible memory with her father. Atlas, who was homeless in high school, was her fierce protector. Atlas reappears in a restaurant in Boston eight years later. Old wounds are reopened, and Lily wants to reconnect with Atlas, although she is now dating Ryle.
Mycast.io users fan cast Dylan O’Brien, Lorenzo Zurzolo, and Wolfgang Novogratz for the part of Atlas. O’Brien would be good in the role because of his trademark goofy personality shown in his Teen Wolf character Stiles.
Fan Casting Lily's BFF Allysa
The free-spirited and stylish Allysa Kincaid is Lily's best friend and Ryle's little sister. Lily met Allysa six months after meeting Ryle but didn't realize at first they were siblings. Lily hired Allysa, who said she had never held a long-term job, to work at the flower shop.
Amanda Seyfried (Dear John) could emulate her Mamma Mia days and bring her happy-go-lucky charm into the role of Allysa, helping further the storyline of what it means to be a true friend, despite going against your own family. According to mycast.io Anne Hathaway, Lily Collins, and Lucy Hale were also fan-cast to be Lily's best friend. Collins, daughter of musician Phil Collins, has similar features similar to Justin Baldoni and could play Ryle's little sister: based on Collins' past work, like in Emily in Paris, she could pull off a gregarious, carefree and trustworthy best friend in IEWU.