“It Ends With Us” – Justin Baldoni addresses a famous line cut from the film

Originally published on E! Online

Warning: This story contains spoilers for It ends with us.

Justin Baldoni hopes that the fans will ride with him on the EAC.

With his new film It ends with us in cinemas, the director and star reveals some of the Easter Eggs he has built into the film – which co-stars Blake Lively, Brandon Sklenar, Jenny Slate And Isabela Ferrer– because, as he noted, they could not include everything, Colleen Hoover's novel from 2016.

“I know there's something a lot of fans love from the book that didn't make it into the movie,” Justin explained in an August 23 Instagram video, “was the phrase 'just keep swimming' that Lily and Atlas shared throughout the book.”

The iconic phrase from the 2003 Pixar film Finding Nemo— is a mantra that is repeated by Ellen DeGeneres' character Dory, who in the book becomes a motivational message between Lily (Blake) and Atlas (Brandon).

Although this line does not appear in the film, as long as you pay attention during the film, It ends with usyou may see some references to the cartoon.

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“If you watch the movie,” Justin said, “look in Lily's bedroom on her wall, there's a poster. I won't say what it shows, but you might see a little homage to the movie or the saying, if you will.”

The 40-year-old revealed that a special stuffed animal also appears in one scene, but be careful because “if you blink, you might miss it.” (In fact, a clownfish-shaped stuffed animal appears in Lily's nursery for her little girl, prompting one fan to on TikTok, “The level of detail in the film is first class!”)

And there is another homage to the Finding Nemo Sentence when Lily and Atlas meet for the first time in his restaurant Root.

“Right next to the bathroom,” Justin said, “if you look in between, there’s a frame with a very similar saying on the wall.”

Fortunately, many fans have discovered the clues since the film's premiere, with one user share the restaurant scene on TikTok and pointed out the painting “Keep on Swimming,” adding, “Did we all miss this? Or was it just me?”

But it wasn't just the details that Justin focused on when directing the film. He also wanted to make sure all voices on set were heard, especially in moments where he felt it was better to hold back. For example, he asked the intimacy coordinator and stunt coordinator to take the lead on the film's more sensitive scenes depicting domestic violence.

“The last thing I wanted was for a male gaze to intrude on these very important moments that need to be told truthfully,” he told Today.com on August 9, “to represent all the women who experience them every day.”

For more information about domestic violence or to get help for yourself or a loved one, visit the National Domestic Violence Hotline website (or call 1-800-799-7233).