Why is Blake Lively's movie rated PG-13?

Content Warning: This article contains discussions of domestic violence and sexual abuse.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni's “It Ends With Us,” based on the 2016 best-selling novel by Colleen Hoover, became a huge box office sensation when it hit theaters in August 2024. It is also been a source of serious drama behind the scenes that have seemingly gotten out of hand (and led to a few lawsuits), but I'll come back to that later. For the uninitiated, what is “It ends with us” about? Is it suitable for a young audience? (No, it's not; I'll get back to that shortly, too.)

The story centers on Lily Blossom Bloom (Lively), a particularly aptly named young woman who dreams of opening a flower shop in Boston and one evening while wet on a random roof in the capital of Massachusetts. Despite Lily's initial reluctance, she and Ryle hit it off quite well and develop a romantic relationship, only for Ryle to have a cooking mishap the night before an extremely important operation. From there, Lily must decide if she wants to hook up with Rylah…or if she wants to reconnect with her childhood love, Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar), who now runs a bustling restaurant in Boston. So why isn't the movie fun for the whole family? Actually, a whole bunch of reasons!

Let's review some of the many, many reasons why “It Ends With Us” is not good viewing 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 adult themes, and It Ends With Us certainly fits that mold.

There is basic profanity in the film – not the f-word, but some “damn”, “a**holes” and s-words scattered throughout the film, but with both sex and domestic violence in it, there are two things that save the film. strictly at a PG-13 rating. Ryle and Lily's relationship is extremely steamy at first. Ryle basically asks Lily to sleep with him, and although she initially resists, she ends up showing up at Ryle's sister Allis's (Jenny Slate) birthday party in an incredibly provocative outfit designed to catch Ryle's attention, and their sexual relationship more or less begins. immediately. We also see young Lily, played by newcomer Isabelle Ferrer, sleeping with Atlas as a teenager (“Colony” star Alex Neuster), and the scene that follows is especially harrowing… as Lily's abusive father Andrew (Kevin McKidd) finds them sleeping together and beats them up Atlas is so severe that the boy ends up in the hospital.

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

The first two times Ryle physically abuses Lily in It Ends With Us, the camera plays both the audience and Lily herself. After Ryle hits Lily when she laughs at him burning her hand, it initially seems like a complete accident, and Ryle later has another outburst about Atlas and Lily's past connection. When Ryle and Lily (unwittingly) go to Atlas's Root restaurant, Ryle realizes that Atlas and Lily know each other and physically attacks Atlas; later, when Ryle finds a piece of paper in Lily's phone case with Atlas' phone number on it, the two argue and she heads to the stairs of his apartment building to leave. While Lily appears to have fallen down the stairs herself – based on Ryle's profuse apology and the fact that he quickly takes care of her after she's hurt – the truth is later revealed to be Ryle. intended to hurt him both times.

Ryle's worst attack on Lily is again over Atlas. When Root is featured in a magazine and the interview notes that the restaurant is in honor of a girl Atlas once loved, with Lily clearly thinking, Ryle pushes Lily and almost sexually assaults her before disappearing. when she runs straight to Atlas, he takes her to the hospital. It's there that Lily realizes she's pregnant, causing her to put some serious distance between herself and Ryla. Although he pleads for her back, Lily stands firm during the pregnancy and tells Ryle that she wants a divorce right after their daughter is born. This is where the title comes in: the cycle of abuse ends with Lily and her daughter, Emerson.

Although “It Ends With Us” helped save the treasury in 2024the fact is that we probably won't be getting a sequel, especially considering the two stars are currently embroiled in multiple lawsuits against each other. (In brief, Blake Lively filed a civil suit against Justin Baldoni in California, alleging he sexually harassed her and created a hostile work environment while filming “It Ends With Us,” and then Baldoni sued The New York Times for their coverage. The complaint then sued Baldoni in federal court, but nothing has been resolved.)

However, a sequel to “It Ends With Us” is written; In 2022, Colleen Hoover published the book It Begins With Us, which splits the focus between Lily and Atlas as they try to develop a relationship despite near-constant obstacles. Despite his history of abuse, Lily is trying to co-parent with Rila, which is already failing, and is further complicated by the presence of Atlas in Lily's life. Meanwhile, Atlas, who has dealt with his abusive mother, discovers that his younger brother, Josh, has run away from home and taken the boy. If “It Begins With Us” were ever to be adapted into a film, it is possible that Lively herself could take on the directorial duties … but based on the fact that Baldoni and Lively will probably only appear in the same place in the courtroom, we can probably rule out the existence of a film adaptation of It Begins With Us.

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

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

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit The website of the National Rape, Abuse and Incest Network or contact the RAINN National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).