The Idea of You author Robinne Lee is reacting to the changes made to the ending of The Idea of You, the film adaptation of her 2017 bestseller. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the author shared how she was ‘not involved at all in the adaptation’ and why she chose the original ending in the first place. (Also read: The Idea of You's Nicholas Galitzine says this about comparisons with Harry Styles: ‘I think Hayes is…’)
What the author said
In the recent interview, the author said, “I was not involved at all in the adaptation. I have not even spoken to [director] Michael [Showalter] yet, but I'm looking forward to meeting him, so no, I haven't spoken to him about any changes… The book is a book, and the movie is a movie. You have to step away and let the filmmakers do what they're going to do and not get too concerned with what it is you've created and when it stops because it's a completely different medium.”
The film provides a surprise twist where Hayes (Nicholas Galitzine) and Solene (Anne Hathaway) meet after 5 years. He shows up at her gallery, and she has a tear-filled smile. However, the book did not provide such a closure, as the two don't end up together.
'That's not the story I wanted to tell'
Talking about the decision to end the book on that note, Robinne also added, “I mean, the movie ending could have happened in the book too, I suppose, years down the line. But that's not the story I wanted to tell. I wanted to make a point about how, as women, we put others' happiness before our own. She chose her daughter before Hayes, and she was also very aware that she was disappointing her best friend, Lulit, her business partner and the co-owner of her gallery, which was suffering from the Hayes relationship. She had to put those other things first. It would've been lovely if she could have balanced all three, but at that point in time, she couldn't.”
{{/usCountry}}Talking about the decision to end the book on that note, Robinne also added, “I mean, the movie ending could have happened in the book too, I suppose, years down the line. But that's not the story I wanted to tell. I wanted to make a point about how, as women, we put others' happiness before our own. She chose her daughter before Hayes, and she was also very aware that she was disappointing her best friend, Lulit, her business partner and the co-owner of her gallery, which was suffering from the Hayes relationship. She had to put those other things first. It would've been lovely if she could have balanced all three, but at that point in time, she couldn't.”
{{/usCountry}}The Idea of You is now streaming on Prime Video.