Colleen Hoover is in a league of her own. In the twelve years since she self-published her first novel, Slammed, Hoover has written 23 more books and novellas, which have spent 120 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Hoover was the top-selling author in 2022 and 2023 and has sold over 20 million books worldwide. It’s safe to say she’s taken the publishing world by storm. If the excitement for and attention surrounding the first film adaptation of her blockbuster hit It Ends with Us is any indication, she is poised to do the same in Hollywood.
It Ends with Us is a story about love, perseverance, and overcoming generational trauma. It revolves around the complicated relationship between entrepreneur Lily (Blake Lively) and the charming yet broody neurosurgeon Ryle (Justin Baldoni). It is a deeply personal story for Hoover, loosely based on the relationship between her mother and father.
“I wrote it to understand her more,” says Hoover, who asked her mother for permission before she wrote the book. “So many people who’ve never experienced [abuse] think, ‘That will never happen to me,’ but I don’t think you take into consideration how many layers there are and how much you do love the person who has hurt you. Stepping into my mother’s shoes to write this book helped me understand her more and appreciate her strength and courage. After she read it–I’m going to cry thinking of this–she said, ‘Until I read your book, I didn’t know I made the right choice.’ She said she always felt guilty for pulling my sisters and me away from our dad and having two households. And that just broke my heart. We grew up in a loving, positive environment with our stepdad, but it still took her reading the book to realise, ‘Okay, I made the right choice’.”
Hoover, who also serves as executive producer on the film alongside Lively, says she still can’t believe the calibre of talent who signed on to bring her story to the big screen. “I don’t know that there’s a better person that could have adapted it,” she says of her director and star, Justin Baldoni. Hoover admits she had trouble believing Lively had signed on to star and executive produce alongside them. “I was keeping myself detached from that possibility because I love her so much. I don’t think I truly believed [she was in it] until the movie was finished and I watched it.”
She sits down with ELLE to discuss the exciting and slightly overwhelming experience of seeing the film come to life, her mother’s moving reaction at an early screening, and what she hopes audiences will also experience when they see the movie in theatres on August 9.
ELLE: How would you describe the journey with this book so far?
Colleen Hoover (CH): Overwhelming is a good word, but overwhelming can also be a good thing. I had nothing in mind when I first wrote It Ends with Us. I thought a few people would read it. I probably would have had a panic attack if I knew what it would’ve turned into because that was never my ultimate goal. I enjoy writing, but it’s incredible to see how many people it’s touched and, sadly, how many people connect to the subject matter.
ELLE: What have you enjoyed most about the adaptation process?
CH: I did say no to a few people who had reached out. They didn’t connect to the book as I hoped, and the book meant more to me than any other book I’d written. So, I was very protective of the film’s rights. After reading the book, Justin emailed me this heartfelt letter explaining why he wanted to make the movie, and I was just like, ‘Oh, he gets it. He understands it. He wants to do it justice.’ He did such a beautiful job.
ELLE: Tell us about Blake Lively playing one of the leading roles.
CH: I prevented myself from believing it for a while. Especially in Hollywood, things change all the time. I thought she would be perfect for it, but I didn’t want to believe it. Her acting skills are just phenomenal. The woman is one of a kind. Writing the book, you imagine the scenes playing out, but then the extra stuff she brought to this character on screen was wonderful. I thought I knew these characters, but after seeing her in the role, it just brought so much more of the book to life.
ELLE: How involved did you want to be in production, and how involved were you?
CH: That’s a good question. The idea of being involved was exciting but also terrifying because I have a whole other full-time job with deadlines and due dates. There’s so much that goes into making a movie. [Justin] actually wanted me to write the script at first, and I took a stab at it and maybe got one page in, and I was like, no, I’m too attached to this story. I took myself out of that role because I thought someone else could give it more time and care than I had the time for. Justin has always been very welcoming and very collaborative. And if anything, I was hesitant; it’s not my space. I write books. I only know a little about the ins and outs of Hollywood, so I appreciate that he wanted my input and kept me involved throughout the whole process so much. I have to give him the credit.
ELLE: Was there one specific element you wanted to make sure they got right, whether it was a tone, costuming, music, or set design?
CH: It’s such a delicate subject that I was worried about it a lot. Of course, you want it to come off the right way. You don’t want them to make Ryle’s character too kind or Lily’s too weak. It’s such a touchy subject matter, but they did a beautiful job of balancing all that. Everyone’s experience with this subject matter is so unique and so different that there’s not a mould that you can fit and put onto the screen.
ELLE: The book has millions of fans, and the adaptation will naturally include changes, such as the decision to age the characters. Do you feel like the fans have embraced that?
CH: I wrote this book a decade ago. I was fresh out of my twenties, so I was writing characters that I felt were my age, and now that I am 44, I’m like, ‘Okay. I think they were too young,’ and I was so happy that Justin agreed and wanted to age them. But I’ll be honest with you: I steer clear and avoid comments and stuff online, so I hope that people will embrace the decisions that they have made and the changes that they’ve made, as I think that they’ve done nothing but enhance the story.
ELLE: What impressed you most about the cast?
CH: All of them. Brandon [Sklenar] did such a great job as Atlas. Now that they’ve been in those roles, I can’t imagine anyone else in those roles, but I was the most excited about Jenny Slate being Alyssa. I have been a Jenny Slate fan for years, but my husband also loves Jenny, and it was so much fun telling him, ‘Guess who’s going to be in the movie?’ More than anything that’s happened, that was very surreal for him –this actress that we’ve been watching on the screen for so long, and then now we get to meet her and see her in this role.
ELLE: Has there been a most surreal day or moment so far? You might be experiencing many of them, especially as you get closer to release.
CH: I think getting to see the film. I was so nervous. We went to the focus group screening in Denver, and I took my husband and mom with me. I had not seen the film yet, and it was very nerve-wracking. I wrote this book loosely based on my mother’s experience, and now it’s a movie, and I’m going to sit in a theatre and watch it with her. We were all excited to see it but also scared to death because it could have gone so wrong. Even if you’re on set and seeing the scenes being filmed, the real challenge is in the editing, where everything needs to be pieced together to create a movie that is cohesive and makes sense. So many things go into it, so getting to sit down and watch the finished film with my mother and watch her reaction was incredible.
ELLE: How do you hope audiences experience the film?
CH: Many book clubs have picked up this book, especially since the pandemic. I think that I’d want to go with my book club. I think it would be such a fun experience. I believe that women should take their friends, their moms. Oh my gosh, just getting to see this with my mom was a dream come true, but I feel like anyone, whether you read the book or are experiencing it for the first time, will find a good film that is very inspiring.
