The internet is a weird place. One day everyone is excited about a book adaptation, and the next, they’re basically riot-testing the costume designer’s choices because of a few grainy photos. That’s exactly what happened when the first It Ends with Us movie set pictures started leaking out of New Jersey. People weren't just curious. They were genuinely, deeply confused.
If you spent any time on TikTok or Twitter during the filming of Colleen Hoover’s massive bestseller, you saw the chaos. It wasn't just about seeing Blake Lively in character. It was about the clothes. Specifically, the layers. The patterns. The kind of eclectic styling that made fans of the book wonder if they’d accidentally walked onto the set of a different movie entirely.
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But here’s the thing: movie sets are messy.
What looks bizarre through a long-distance paparazzi lens often looks completely different under professional lighting and color grading. Still, those initial leaks created a PR whirlwind that the production had to ride out for months.
The Day the First It Ends with Us Movie Set Pictures Dropped
Everything changed in May 2023. Production was humming along in Hoboken and Jersey City. Then, the photos hit. We saw Blake Lively, who plays the protagonist Lily Bloom, wearing a patchwork of textures that felt... loud.
There was the pink Carhartt-style jacket paired with patterned pants. Then there were the double-waistband trousers. Fans of the book had a very specific image of Lily Bloom in their heads. They saw her as a floral shop owner, sure, but maybe more "boho-chic" and less "thrift store explosion." The backlash was instantaneous. Honestly, it was a bit brutal.
Social media sleuths started dissecting every single frame. Why was she wearing two pairs of pants? Why the combat boots with that specific dress? It became a meme before the movie even had a trailer. The conversation shifted from the emotional weight of the story—which deals with heavy themes of domestic abuse and generational trauma—to a heated debate about whether Lily Bloom would actually own a nose ring and a bucket hat.
Breaking Down the Aesthetic
Justin Baldoni, who not only stars as Ryle Kincaid but also directed the film, found himself in a tricky spot. The It Ends with Us movie set pictures were providing a fragmented view of a much larger vision.
Lily Bloom is supposed to be "quirky." She’s a creative. She’s someone who started a business from scratch and doesn't exactly follow the rules of conventional society. The costume design, led by Eric Daman—the man responsible for the iconic looks in Gossip Girl—was clearly trying to signal that independence. Daman knows fashion. He knows how to make a statement. But the gap between "high-fashion editorial quirk" and "what a book fan imagined" was a mile wide.
Why the Internet Hated the Leaks
Most people don't realize how much color grading affects a film. When you look at raw It Ends with Us movie set pictures, you’re seeing harsh, natural daylight on a digital sensor. It flattens everything.
In the final film, those colors are muted. The shadows are deepened. The "messy" outfits actually serve a narrative purpose. They show Lily’s evolution. When she’s with Ryle, her style feels one way; when she’s reflecting on her past with Atlas, it feels another.
There's also the "Hoover Effect." Colleen Hoover has a massive, protective fanbase. When you adapt a book that has sold millions of copies, you aren't just making a movie; you're managing a collective imagination. If the set pictures don't match the Pinterest boards fans have been building for years, they feel betrayed. It’s a visceral reaction.
The Atlas Corrigan Factor
Then came the pictures of Brandon Sklenar as Atlas. The vibe shifted slightly. People generally liked the rugged, understated look for Atlas. It felt grounded. The contrast between Atlas’s simplicity and Lily’s chaotic layering in those It Ends with Us movie set pictures actually hinted at the core conflict of the movie.
Atlas represents home. He represents a version of Lily that is uncomplicated and safe. Ryle represents the shiny, complicated, and ultimately dangerous "new" life in Boston. If you look at the set photos through that lens, the styling starts to make a little more sense. It’s visual storytelling, even if it’s jarring at first glance.
Lessons from the Hoboken Set
Filming in public is a double-edged sword. On one hand, you get free publicity. On the other, you lose control of the narrative.
The production faced several hurdles beyond just the fashion critics. There was the WGA strike, which paused filming for a significant chunk of time. This meant those initial It Ends with Us movie set pictures were the only thing fans had to chew on for nearly a year. Without a trailer to provide context, the "ugly clothes" narrative became the dominant story.
- Context is everything. A single photo of Blake Lively laughing between takes doesn't tell you the tone of the scene.
- Paparazzi shots are unflattering. They use long lenses that compress the image, making outfits look bulkier than they appear on cinema cameras.
- Fandom is a powerhouse. The sheer volume of discourse generated by these photos proves that It Ends with Us was always going to be a box-office monster, regardless of whether people liked the pants or not.
Was the Backlash Justified?
Kinda. When you're an author like Colleen Hoover, your brand is built on relatability. Fans felt the costumes made Lily look more like a caricature of a "cool girl" than a real person they could relate to.
However, seeing the finished product (and the subsequent trailers) proved that many of those outfits were used in specific contexts that made sense. One of the most-criticized looks—the one with the multiple layers and the boots—actually appears during a scene that emphasizes Lily's hectic, distracted state of mind. It wasn't meant to be "pretty." It was meant to be character-driven.
Real-World Impact on the Movie’s Success
Usually, bad buzz kills a movie. This time? It did the opposite.
The controversy surrounding the It Ends with Us movie set pictures kept the film in the headlines for eighteen months. By the time the first official trailer dropped—set to Taylor Swift’s "my tears ricochet"—the hype was at a fever pitch.
People who had spent months making fun of the outfits were suddenly crying over the chemistry between Lively and Sklenar. The marketing team leaned into the "flower shop" aesthetic, softening the blow of the earlier, harsher leaks. They pivoted perfectly.
Expert Take: The "Leak" Strategy
Some industry insiders even wondered if the leaks were managed. In a world where attention is currency, having people argue about your movie a year before it opens is a win. I don't think they wanted people to hate the clothes, but the engagement numbers were undeniable.
The film eventually grossed hundreds of millions. It proved that "BookTok" isn't just a niche corner of the internet; it’s a massive demographic that can turn a "hated" set photo into a sold-out opening weekend.
What to Do if You’re Still Skeptical
If you’re one of the people who saw those It Ends with Us movie set pictures and vowed never to watch the movie, you might want to reconsider. Seeing the costumes in motion, within the actual cinematography of the film, is a totally different experience.
Actionable Steps for Content Consumers:
- Watch the Official Trailer vs. The Leaks: Side-by-side, the difference in lighting and color grading is a masterclass in how movies are actually made. The "clashing" colors often harmonize once they go through post-production.
- Look for the "Easter Eggs": Many of those weird costume choices in the set pictures are actually nods to specific lines in the book or symbolic markers of Lily’s growth.
- Research Eric Daman’s Process: Understanding the "why" behind the wardrobe can change your perspective. He wasn't trying to make a Sears catalog; he was trying to build a person out of fabric.
- Separate the Art from the Paparazzi: Remember that a set photo is a work-in-progress. It’s like looking at a half-finished painting and complaining that the colors don't match.
The journey of the It Ends with Us adaptation is a fascinating case study in modern fandom. It shows how quickly we form opinions based on a single pixelated image and how much power we give to those initial impressions. But ultimately, the movie stood on its own, proving that a character is much more than the sum of their patterned layers.