Blake Lively and Brandon Sklenar are bringing Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel “It Ends With Us” to life in a highly anticipated film adaptation. The book has spent 164 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and its devoted fans have waited for the movie’s release.

Lively, who plays the lead character Lily, said she felt she had to deliver something meaningful for the audience, who have been fans of the book. 

Sklenar plays Lily’s first love, Atlas, and admitted that he wasn’t fully aware of the book’s popularity. 

“I knew of its existence, but I wasn’t aware of how big it was and sort of the cultural significance of it,” Sklenar said. 

Lively described her character, Lily, as a mix of contradictions. 

“She’s incredibly strong and self-assured and knows who she is. Yet she’s vulnerable and tender and she gets lost,” she said. 

Sklenar added that he hopes the movie will empower women who relate to Lily’s story and encourage men who see themselves in the character of Ryle to recognize their flaws and make positive changes.

Meanwhile, a large conversation about the film on social media centers around the movie’s music — particularly the inclusion of Taylor Swift’s song “My Tears Ricochet.” Lively shared that Swift was involved throughout the process and that the song was added to the film after it was used in the trailer. 

“She was with me throughout this whole process,” Lively said. “So I think that, you know, for, for better or worse, she, she was, uh, you know, experienced the whole thing with me.”