Netflix has done a phenomenal job Ugly to the screen, but many changes were still made to the book. The story of Talia Youngblood was first conceived by author Scott Westerfeld, who published the popular YA sci-fi series back in 2005. There was talk of a movie adaptation almost immediately, but it took almost 20 years to finally come to fruition. become a reality. Netflix picked up the rights, and Ugly is officially available on the streaming platform. However, viewers who love Westerfeld’s books will notice some differences.
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Ugly is the first of four books set in Talley’s world, although Westerfeld later expanded with four books in the Imposters series between 2018 and 2022. With eight books in total, this fictional universe is meticulously explored, so there is naturally a lot of scrutiny on Netflix. Ugly. in all, The adaptation is generally faithful to the source. However, a variety of changes, from Dr. Cable’s role in Tully’s town to the fate of Paris, have been changed to some degree.
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Tally and Paris are not necessarily romantic in this book
The Uglies movie made their feelings for each other more open
in the Ugly In the movie, Tully and Paris struggled with their feelings for each other, which led to the latter’s operation. It was clear that they feel romantic towards one another, although unable to express these feelings. Later, when Shay asks Tally if Paris is her boyfriend, Tally’s awkward response again implies that she is in love with the boy.
It’s one of the more subtle changes from book to movie, but Tully and Paris’ relationship was a little more plutonic in disgusting –For an important reason. As the narrator, Talley explains that People assumed she and Paris were romantic in the past, but that was never the case. However, she implies that this could change once they were pretties. While Uglies do a date and kiss, Tally clarifies that this is just kids’ stuff and is never considered serious. Only once teens became pretties, their real romance began since that was when they were brainwashed into believing they mattered.
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Dr. Cable’s role in Tully’s town has changed
Dr. Cable is not the governor in the ugly book
One of the biggest surprises of the Ugly movie was the role of Dr. Cable. Near the movie’s beginning, Talley and Paris attend a seminar meant to involve uglies in their time as pretties. Dr. Cable appears as a hologram, and A voice told her “District Governor Dr. Nia Cable.” Her beautiful face was clearly one that everyone was familiar with, and it is implied that her image appeared in every New Beautiful seminar.
Dr. Cable was a much more ominous and secretive presence in the Ugly Book and someone that very few citizens of Tally’s town would have ever seen. She was the leader of a secret organization called Special Circumstances And has been surgically altered to look like a fearsome, ferocious predator. Tally was afraid of her in UglyAnd the same was true for anyone else who had the misfortune of making a trip under special circumstances.
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“Special Circumstances” is different in this book
The Ugly movie misses and changes a lot about special circumstances
While Dr. Cable’s role is different in UglyShe is still implied to be the leader of special circumstances. When Talley’s operation was delayed, and she was brought before Dr. Cable, the elevator she took to the governor’s office still announced that she was in “special circumstances.” What’s more, Cable tells Paris that she’s going to make him “Special“In Netflix UglyJust before he was put under the knife again to be transformed into a mindless soldier with enhanced physical abilities.
Book fans know that Paris was transformed into a special, an agent of special circumstances. Dr. Cable himself is a special in these Ugly book, and While she and her agents have incredible speed, reflexes, and agility, they are far from mindless. In fact, in Westerfeld’s books, specials have enhanced cognitive abilities. However, their ability to control their tempers is diminished, and they are considered dangerous and unpredictable.
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Paris becomes a special in the ugly movie
This definitely does not happen in the books
Even bigger than the shock about Dr. Cable was Nertflix’s version of Paris’ story in Ugly. In the movie, Paris basically forgot about Tally once he became beautiful, but his memory of their friendship was revived when Cable asked him to convince her to help Special Circumstances find Shay. The fact that Paris could think his way past the beautiful lesions showed cable that the boy demanded”More.” So, she turns him into a special.
While Dr. Cable used Paris to convince Tally to help find Shay, that was basically the last that was seen of him in the Ugly book.
This certainly did not happen in the US Ugly book. While Dr. Cable used Paris to convince Tally to help find Shay, that was basically the last we saw of him in this installment. in the sequel, beautifulTally reunites with Paris in New Beautiful TownAnd they try for a while to get back to their friendship. However, Tally quickly began fighting against her brain lesions, while Peris was content to be a prettyhead. Ultimately, their friendship fell apart when Tully decided to flee the city, and Paris stayed behind.
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Talley’s mission in the smoke is a little different
The “weapon” of the smoke is not Tally’s main focus
in the Ugly movie, Dr. Cable has a specific mission for Tally. She tells her that David is holding Shane against her will, just like he was all the other enemies. , who fled to the smoke, she explained that he did this in order to weaken the city so that he could use a weapon against her, and it was. Tally works to clear the smoke, discover what the weapon is, and set aside her hanger to alert Dr. Cable.
in the Ugly book, Tally’s mission is only to find the smoke and alert cable When she gets there. There was no mention of a weapon, and it was never stated that David was specifically holding Uglies ransom. While Cable implied that the runaways were in danger, the focus was placed instead on the threat of people wanting to live in the wild, burning trees and killing animals for food.
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The purpose of the White Tiger Orchid has changed
The White Tiger Orchid has a larger role in Tully’s town in the Ugly movie
The opening sequence in Ugly Explains that the Rusty civilization fell because of an overdependence on fossil fuels and that The solution was a genetically modified flower called the white tiger orchid. Although it is not explained how they work, Talley says that the orchids are the city’s source of power – a cleaner and much more beautiful alternative to modern fuels. However, when she came to the smoke, she learned that the orchids are an invasive species and that humanity is still destroying the ecosystem for the sake of power.
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This is not the case in the US Ugly book. Tally didn’t learn about the white tiger orchids until she ran away from the smoke and came upon Preties from another town burning the flowers. They explained that, although beautiful, the white tiger orchids are invasive and, therefore, they have to be removed. This has nothing to do with Tally’s city, and The orchids are instead meant to symbolize humanity’s effect on the planet.
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The Ugly Movie cuts Shay and David’s romance
The Ugly Book has the obligatory love triangle
Shea arrived at the smoke long before Tally and had been in contact with David at the Rusty Ruins long before that. So, when Tally appeared in the Ugly Movie, Shay is already pretty well established. She understood how things worked in the smoke and Telling Tally that David giving her gloves was a pretty serious gesture since gifts in the smoke required thoughtresources, and sacrifice. The lesson helped Tally understand that she needed to make a decision about staying the smoke.
When Shay saw the gloves, she became jealous and angry with Tally for essentially stealing her boyfriend.
She’s conversation with Tally about David’s gloves went completely differently in the Ugly book. Soon after Tally arrived, it was clear that Shay was in love with David, and they had some kind of physical relationship with each other. However, David’s feelings for Tally got in the way. When Shay saw the gloves, she became jealous and angry with Tally for essentially stealing her boyfriend. It was A love triangle is referenced several times throughout these Ugly book series.
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The Ugly Movie Cuts Smoke’s “Boss”
The role was cast but never featured
Very few Smokey’s are introduced in Netflix Ugly Movie. While David, his parents, Shay, and Crowe all take center stage, the rest is basically background noise. However, one character, an old man called “the bus,“Held a pretty important role in Westerfeld Ugly book. Despite its name, the boss is not in charge of the smoke. He was just the oldest and the wisest (although the capricious). This was important because Tally had never seen someone age normally before.
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While The Boss isn’t featured much in Netflix UglyThe character was technically cast and appeared on screen briefly when Tally arrived in the smoke. He is seen pushing a wheelbarrow with books, and The man playing the boss is none other than Ugly Author Scott Westerfeld himself. This makes it even more of a shame that the character didn’t get a bigger moment on screen.
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The death of David’s father is completely different in this book
That died differently in the ugly movie
David’s father died in both these Ugly Book and movie, but these like was significantly different. In Netflix’s version, Dr. Cable orders that’s death while in the smoke, and The execution is carried out by special Paris. It was a terrifying moment that demonstrated just how far Dr. Cable would go and just how unlike himself Paris truly had become. However, the book version of Az’s death packs a different kind of punch.
in the Ugly Book, died only after he was brought back to the city. Dr. Cable performed the beautiful operation on him and tried to restore the lesions in his mind– This time to erase all his memories of the last ten years that he spent in the wild. The experiment is too far, and that died on the table (or in the tank, rather). This made Maddy’s insistence that they not experiment on unwieldy subjects all the more meaningful.
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The Uglies movie changed Tally’s ending
Shane Tully didn’t have a scar in the Ugly books
The end of the US Ugly The movie isn’t terribly different, but one major detail draws the differentiating line. The Ugly The book ended with the moment Talley said, “My name is Tally Youngblood. Make me beautiful“, and readers have to wait until the sequel, beautifulTo see her life as such in New Beautiful Town. on the other hand, The movie gives a brief look at Pretty Tally after a meaningful shot of the scar on her hand. The detail showed that Tally was still Tally, at least a little, despite the surgery.
The scar is the biggest change here. New pretties are not allowed to keep scars Or other imperfections since that just defeats the point. However, it makes some sense that Netflix’s Ugly Tali gave her scar. Although the book has the benefit of Tally’s inner dialogue to prove that her true self is still tucked away in her mind, movie adaptations do not have this option. The mark on Tally’s hand was an effective alternative – even if it contradicted that Ugly Fans know how Talley’s city works.