It Ends With Us 2: Where the Sequel Stands Amid Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively Speculation
Colleen Hoover says the door is open for an It Starts With Us film, with talks ongoing about a big-screen follow-up to It Ends With Us. The update comes as questions around Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively linger.
If you were hoping the It Ends With Us movie would charge straight into an It Starts With Us sequel, temper expectations. Colleen Hoover just weighed in on the chances, and she sounds more protective of the ending we already have than eager to spin up a new film.
What Hoover actually said
In a recent interview, Hoover was clear that she never wrote the second book with a movie in mind. She put it this way:
"I wrote that book as a 'thank you' to readers. I don't know that there's enough story to make a film adaptation either."
She also pointed to the ending we already saw on screen:
"It Ends With Us was so impactful, and it was so well wrapped up in the first film."
That tracks with how she describes the follow-up novel: more about letting the characters find some peace than adding fresh turmoil.
So is a sequel off the table?
Not entirely closed, just not something she is pushing. Hoover left the door cracked if the team behind the first film decided to reunite:
"Of course, if they all came together and wanted to do it, I'm not going to talk anyone out of it."
Translation: she is fine with the book standing on its own, but she will not stop anyone if momentum builds.
What the second book actually covers
It Starts With Us shifts the center of gravity to Lily and Atlas trying to build a life together, while Lily co-parents her daughter with Ryle. It is about putting a family back together after trauma, juggling motherhood and co-parenting, and choosing stability and healing. Hoover has said she wrote it because she wanted to see Lily and Atlas happy beyond the conflict of the first arc, which is a lovely aim and also the kind of thing that can be tougher to translate into a punchy two-hour film.
Quick refresher on the first movie
The 2024 film follows Lily Bloom as she falls for neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid and confronts the cycle of abuse tied to her past. It is a story that resonated with audiences and lands in a deliberately final place.
- Blake Lively plays Lily Bloom
- Justin Baldoni directs and appears as Ryle Kincaid
- Brandon Sklenar plays Atlas Corrigan, Lily's childhood friend and later love
The bottom line
People keep asking about expanding this into a full-on franchise, but Hoover is guarding the tone and ending of the first movie. If the original team circles back, she is open. Until then, consider the sequel a maybe, leaning no.