Everything to Know About theIt Ends With UsControversy In Advance of the New Movie

Mar. 15, 2025

Bestselling authorColleen Hoover, 44, wrote her first book as a gift to her mom Vannoy Fite, but it was another family story that really made her a star.

Hoover’s 2016 novel,It Ends With Us, which is based on her parents' relationship, will hit theaters as a feature film she co-executive produced withBlake LivelyandJustin Baldoni(who also directed) on Aug. 9. And while the book is a runaway hit, ranking No. 1 on Amazon as of the time of publication, with more than 300,000 reviews and a 4.7-star rating, it’s not without its critics. That’s not unexpected, Hoover told PEOPLE for a story in this week’s print issue.

Colleen Hoover (left) and her mom Vannoy Fite; the cover of ‘It Ends With Us’.Colleen Hoover/Instagram

Colleen Hoover/Instagram

For more on Colleen Hoover andIt Ends With Us, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands now, or subscribehere.

“A book that has this many readers, the negative attention’s going to be loud,” she explains, adding that she sometimes has to comfort friends who get up in arms trying to defend it online. “The overall score and the amount of reviews on Amazon is incredible … So I think people focus on all the negativity, but that’s going to come with a book that has had this many readers, of course.”

So what’s the beef? Those who haven’t read the book or watched the film will want to stop reading here, as spoilers lie ahead.

Amazon

Some fans criticized the portrayal of intimate partner violence

Both the book and movie version ofIt Ends With Usfollows Lily Bloom as she embarks on a romance with Ryle, but over time, his violent side emerges. He emotionally, sexually and physically abuses Lily, who realizes their relationship needs to change after she becomes pregnant. Ultimately, Lily decides to divorce Ryle and allow him to continue to co-parent their daughter.

That choice has driven controversy, with some readers questioning Lily’s choice to keep Ryle around for as long as she does. Others praise the realistic nature of the relationship, pointing out that leaving an abusive partner isn’t an easy or straightforward decision.

For her part, Hoover has been open about how watching her own parents' relationship influenced that writing choice.

Colleen Hoover (right) and her mother, Vannoy Fite.Colleen Hoover/Instagram

“There were no resources for women to leave situations like that,” she continued, adding her mother divorced her father when she was 2. “She was able to get out of that relationship. And then from then on, I just remember growing up with a mother who was so strong and independent.”

The book is shelved as ‘romance,’ not ‘fiction’

The categorization of the book as “romance” has also raised some eyebrows, because of the nature of Lily and Ryle’s relationship. Some readers have suggested the book would be better shelved under “contemporary fiction,” while others argue thatdark romanceis a sub-genre in itself.

Some fans thought Lily and Ryle should be younger

Justin Baldoni (left); Blake Lively.Dia Dipasupil/Getty, Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Dia Dipasupil/Getty, Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Once Lively and Baldoni were attached to the film,Hoover faced backlashbecause Lively, 36, and Baldoni, 39, are much older than theIt Ends with Uscharacters.

In June 2023, Hoover explained that casting more mature actors actually corrects a mistake she realized post-publication. “I didn’t know that neurosurgeons went to school for 50 years," she said. “There’s not a 20-something neurosurgeon.”

“As I started making this movie, I’m like, ‘We need to age them out because I messed up,’ ” Hoover added. “So that’s my fault.”

Others just didn’t like the outfits

Blake Lively (left) and Justin Baldoni on the set of ‘It Ends With Us’.Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

The costumes Lively wears in the film also drew criticism from devoted fans, with some calling her outfits “frumpy,” but those attached to the film brushed it off. “We’re not always thinking about why her clothes look that way in that area. And also once you see the movie, it all makes sense,” Baldoni toldET.

Baldoni added that once people see the movie, he thinks they’ll be pleased, and that he (and the entire team) appreciate the passionate place those critiques come from.

And as the one who dreamed them up, Hoover said doesn’t even remember what Lily was wearing in the book. “I don’t remember describing outfits at all. I don’t care what they have on,” she toldTodaycohostJenna Bush Hagerat the time. “In my head, it’s about the conversation they’re having and the story. It’s the same way in the movie.”

Audrey Long, who runs a celebrity fashionInstagrammostly dedicated to Lively, said she was “dying” over the boots.

Lively replied, revealing that she brought them from her own closet. “they’re my real life boots I loaned to the movie :)”

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

Both Lively and Hoover promise fans one thing: Whether you read the book first and loved it, or watch the film and then run to your nearest bookstore to pick it up, you’re going to love 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.”

“‘Cause as a reader first, you know, we want those movies to reflect the books that we write,” Hoover added. “And so I think y’all are gonna be very happy when it comes out.”

It Ends With Ushits theaters on Aug. 9.

source: people.com