Why Blake Lively Movie Is Rated PG-13

Content Warning: this article contains discussions of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s film “It Ends With Us,” based on the bestselling 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover, it became a huge box office sensation when it hits theaters in August 2024. It too been in the the source of some serious drama behind the scenes that seems to have gotten out of hand (and led to some lawsuits), but I’ll circle back to that later. For the uninitiated, what is “It Ends With Us” about? Is it appropriate for young audiences? (No, it’s not; I’ll also circle back to that shortly.)

The story centers on Lily Blossom Bloom (Lively), an aptly named young woman who dreams of opening a flower shop in Boston and meets hot-tempered neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni, and he also directed the film) one night while she’s loitering. a random roof in the capital of Massachusetts. Despite Lily’s initial hesitation, she and Ryle hit it off pretty well and began a romantic relationship, only for it to go awry after Ryle has a cooking accident the night before a very important operation. From there, Lily has to decide if she’s willing to stick it out with Ryle…or if she wants to reconnect with her childhood sweetheart Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar), who now runs a restaurant buzzy in Boston. So why isn’t the movie fun for the whole family? Lots of reasons, really!

Let’s go over some of the many, a lot reasons why “It Ends With Us” is not a good watch for young viewers. If you’re at all familiar with the source material – or anything Colleen Hoover has ever written – you know that her novels deal with decidedly adult themes, and “It Ends With Us ” certainly fits that pattern.

There is basic profanity – not the f-word but a few “damns,” “a**holes,” and s-words sprinkled throughout the film – but its depiction of sexual and domestic violence are the two things that keep the film. firmly rated PG-13. Ryle and Lily’s relationship is, at first, extremely steamy. Ryle basically begs Lily to sleep with him, and although she’s put off at first, she ends up showing up to Ryle’s sister Allysa’s (Jenny Slate) birthday party in a very provocative outfit who is supposed to catch Ryle’s attention, and their sexual relationship pretty much begins. immediately. We also see young Lily, played by newcomer Isabela Ferrer, sleeping with teenage Atlas (“Colony” star Alex Neustaedter), and the scene that follows is particularly harrowing … because Andrew (Kevin McKidd, Lily’s abusive father) finds them in bed together and beats Atlas so severely that the boy ends up in hospital.

As an adult, Lily realizes she is part of the cycle of abuse after Ryle loses his temper and hits her for the first time (he takes a hot pan out of the stove without a glove and burns his hand; after Lily laughs impulsively and Ryle slaps her across the face), and the film’s dark turn about halfway through definitely contributes to its score. To be honest, the sex scenes in “It Ends With Us” are quite tame compared to the depictions of domestic violence.

The first two times that Ryle physically abuses Lily in “It Ends With Us,” the camera plays a trick on the audience and, in addition, on Lily herself. After Ryle hits Lily when she laughs at him burning his hand, it feels like a complete accident at first, and later, Ryle has another outburst over Atlas and Lily’s previous connection. When Ryle and Lily (unknowingly) go to Atlas’ restaurant, Root, Ryle realizes that Atlas and Lily know each other and physically attacks Atlas; later, when Ryle finds a piece of paper with Atlas’ phone number hidden inside Lily’s phone case, the two argue and she goes up the stairs in his apartment building to leave . Although it looked as if Lily had fallen down the stairs on her own—based on Ryle’s profuse apologies and the fact that he was quick to tend to her after she was hurt—the truth is emerged later, namely Ryle. editing to hurt him both times.

Ryle’s worst attack on Lily is, once again, over Atlas. When Root is featured in a magazine and the interview states that the restaurant is in honor of a girl Atlas once loved, which obviously means Lily, Ryle forces himself on Lily and almost sexually assaults her before she escapes; when she runs directly to Atlas, he takes her to the hospital. There Lily realizes that she is pregnant, a fact that pushes her to put serious distance between herself and Ryle. Although he begs for her back, Lily stands firm throughout the pregnancy and, immediately after the birth of their daughter, tells Ryle she wants a divorce. That’s where the title comes in: the cycle of abuse ends with Lily and her daughter Emerson.

Although “It’s Over With Us” help save the box office in 2024the fact is that we probably are It won’t get a sequel, especially when you consider that the two stars are currently facing several lawsuits against each other. (In brief, Blake Lively filed a civil complaint in California against Justin Baldoni, alleging he sexually harassed her and created a hostile work environment while filming “It Ends With Us,” at which point Baldoni sued The New York Times for their coverage of the complaint.

There is a written sequel to “It Ends With Us,” though; in 2022, Colleen Hoover published “It Starts With Us,” which splits its focus between Lily and Atlas as they try to forge a relationship despite near-constant obstacles. Despite his history of violence, Lily tries to co-parent with Ryle, an effort that is already not going well and is further complicated by the presence of Atlas in Lily’s life. Meanwhile, Atlas, who was dealing with his own abusive mother, discovers that his younger brother Josh has run away from home and takes the boy in. If “It Starts With Us” is ever adapted into a film, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Lively herself could take over as director … but based on the fact that Baldoni and Lively will probably only appear in the same place going forward in a courtroom, we can probably rule out the existence of a movie adaptation of “It Starts With Us.”

“It Ends With Us” is rated PG-13 and is available to stream on Netflix now.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799-7233. You can also find more information, resources and support at their website.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, there is help available. Visit the National Violence, Abuse and Burns Network website or contact the RAINN National Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).