For many readers, there’s nothing better than seeing your favorite book come to life on the big screen, but the pressure can sometimes lead to disappointment. Fans of Colleen Hoover, a New York Times best-selling author and writer of “It Ends with Us,” have been anxiously waiting for the announcement of the cast, but stakes are high as fans have already cast who they think would play the roles of the two leading characters, Lily Bloom and Ryle, best. 

In a perfect world, Lily Bloom would be played by the one and only Abigail Cowen. Cowen is an American actress and model, best known for her role in the live-action adaptation of “Winx Club” on Netflix, “Fate: The Winx Saga.” As fans read the book, all anyone could picture was Cowen. A beautiful young girl with fiery red hair, freckles and green eyes. 

Instead, Blake Lively, a very popular actress, best known for her role as Serena Vanderwood in Gossip Girl, is cast as Lily Bloom. Lively is a beloved woman in Hollywood, but no one expected her to be cast in the role. At the beginning of “It Ends with Us,” Lily Bloom is 23 years old and just entering adulthood. Blake Lively is a beautiful woman, but at 35 years old, will she be able to bring a sense of youthfulness to the character? Fans are not so sure. 

In addition to directing the new movie, Justin Baldoni is not just the live-action director for the movie but is also playing Ryle, Bloom’s abusive boyfriend in the book. Fans aren’t so much disappointed by Baldoni’s playing the role as the fact that Theo James isn’t. Theo James is well known in the book world for playing Four in the film adaptation of “Divergent”, and many people witnessed his bold persona and sharp temper through this role. Ryle, a built, handsome man with a hidden identity, would have been brought to life perfectly by James, but Baldoni will have to take on the task. 

This situation is thought to be the biggest problem in the book world currently and most thought that the situation couldn’t get any worse, that is, until the Atlas casting. 

Atlas is Bloom’s other love interest in the book and is described as 25 years old with beautiful blue eyes and brown hair. The actor interested in playing Atlas, Shane West, only fits one of the two categories with his brown hair. West is also 44 years old which, yet again, takes away the youthfulness that the cast was expected to have. 

Many people were touched by “It Ends with Us,” which has brought a lot of awareness to issues around abusive relationships. It only makes sense that a book that has made such a difference in people’s lives gets a perfect reenactment of the trials and tribulations that Lily Bloom experienced so early in her life. Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni and Shane West are phenomenal actors but will they be able to pull off the movie in a way that even comes close to what fans have in mind? I guess we will see what happens in 2024.