It all began with a steamy, angst-filled romance that set social media ablaze. The After series, based on Anna Todd’s wildly popular fanfiction-turned-bestselling novels, has taken fans on a rollercoaster ride of love, betrayal, heartbreak, and redemption. Now, the final chapter, After Everything, is streaming on Netflix—and whether you’ve followed every swoon-worthy twist or lost track somewhere around After We Fell, it’s time for a refresher. Because this last installment brings everything full circle in a way that’s surprising, emotional, and surprisingly mature.
For those who need a quick catch-up: the After series centers on Tessa Young (Josephine Langford), a bright and driven college student, and Hardin Scott (Hero Fiennes Tiffin), a brooding, tattooed bad boy with a tragic past and a talent for self-destruction. Their relationship has always been intense, passionate, and—let’s be honest—a little toxic. Across four previous films (After, After We Collided, After We Fell, and After Ever Happy), fans have watched them fight, fall apart, find their way back, and grow through the chaos.
Haunted by past mistakes and emotionally adrift, he travels to Portugal in search of closure with a woman he hurt years ago—Natalie (played by Mimi Keene of Sex Education fame). This unexpected detour gives the film a quieter, more introspective tone as Hardin begins to reckon with the pain he’s caused others, and more importantly, himself. It’s a bold move for a franchise known for emotional blowouts and steamy hotel room scenes, but it pays off. There’s character growth here—real, tangible growth—that fans have long hoped for. Hardin finally feels like a man trying to be better, not just for Tessa, but for himself.
While After Everything is primarily Hardin’s story, Tessa still plays a crucial role. When she finally reappears in the second half of the film, it’s clear that she, too, has grown. She’s no longer the wide-eyed girl trying to fix a broken man. She’s a woman with boundaries, confidence, and a sense of self that doesn’t revolve around Hardin. Their reunion scenes are emotionally charged, but also refreshingly mature. There’s pain, forgiveness, longing—and yes, closure. Whether you’re rooting for them to end up together or hoping they go their separate ways, the film allows space for both perspectives. It doesn’t force a tidy fairy-tale ending. Instead, it leaves room for ambiguity, reflection, and individual healing.
Let’s be honest—no one watches the After series for subtlety. Fans show up for the emotional intensity, the chemistry, the passion. And After Everything doesn’t forget that. There are callbacks to earlier films, glimpses of familiar characters, and a few romantic moments that will absolutely melt your heart. But perhaps the most satisfying part is seeing how far we’ve come. This franchise started as Wattpad fanfiction loosely inspired by One Direction. It evolved into a cultural phenomenon that sparked heated debates and passionate fan communities. And now, it’s closing its chapter with a film that finally seems to understand what it wants to be: a story about growing up, letting go, and learning how to love yourself before anyone else.
It’s impossible to talk about After without acknowledging its polarizing reputation. Critics have often slammed the series for its depiction of toxic relationships, its dramatic excesses, and its uneven pacing. And to be fair, those critiques aren’t without merit. But they also miss a key point: the After films were never trying to be prestige cinema. They’ve always been about emotional catharsis, about messy love, and about the intensity of first heartbreak.
What After Everything does so well is that it embraces that identity while also growing past it. It gives the franchise—and its fans—something deeper, more reflective, and ultimately more rewarding. It doesn’t rewrite history, but it gives the characters a chance to move forward from it. Even if you’ve only watched one or two After films—or just heard about the chaos online—After Everything is worth your time. It’s a fitting end to a series that’s captured millions of hearts (and rolled a few eyes along the way). More importantly, it’s a story about accountability, change, and the difficult, beautiful process of healing.
You may not agree with every choice the film makes. You might still find Hardin frustrating or Tessa too forgiving. But there’s a realness here that wasn’t always present in earlier entries. It’s the realness of two people trying to untangle a relationship that shaped them—and choosing how, or whether, to carry it forward. After Everything might not convert the series’ harshest critics, but it does what many fans feared it wouldn’t: it ends with grace. It offers closure without pretending everything is perfect. It reminds viewers that love is messy, but growth is possible. And sometimes, growing apart is just as powerful as staying together.
