For fans of the wildly passionate and drama-filled After franchise, After Ever Happy was billed as the final chapter in Tessa and Hardin’s turbulent love story. But as the credits rolled and emotions ran high, one lingering question remained: Is this really the end? Or is there a fifth After film waiting in the wings?
Released in 2022, After Ever Happy is the fourth installment in the After film series, based on Anna Todd’s best-selling novels. It follows the emotional and deeply flawed relationship between Tessa Young and Hardin Scott, two young lovers navigating trauma, family secrets, and the challenges of growing up together — and often, growing apart. The movie picks up where After We Fell left off, diving into Hardin’s emotional spiral after learning devastating family truths. As he self-destructs, Tessa makes a painful decision that reshapes their future. By the end, the film leans heavily into personal growth and bittersweet closure, hinting that perhaps, for now, Tessa and Hardin must walk different paths.
Surprising many, Voltage Pictures announced that a fifth film, titled After Everything, was secretly filmed back-to-back with After Ever Happy. This installment dropped in 2023, making it the actual final chapter in the film series — at least for Tessa and Hardin’s love story as fans have come to know it. Unlike the other films, After Everything is not based directly on a novel in the original series. Instead, it’s an original screenplay that extends Hardin’s journey post-breakup. It follows him traveling to Lisbon in hopes of redemption, healing, and closure — not just with Tessa, but with himself and his past.
In After Everything, we see a more mature and self-reflective Hardin, grappling with heartbreak and unresolved issues. The film explores his efforts to become the man Tessa once hoped he could be, while also letting go of the toxic patterns that plagued their relationship. Tessa’s role in the film is more limited, as the narrative focuses heavily on Hardin’s solo arc. Still, their connection lingers throughout the movie, keeping the emotional thread of their story alive. The film has a tone of finality and introspection — less about passion, more about peace. It’s not about reigniting flames, but about accepting life’s turns. In that sense, After Everything functions as the real conclusion to the saga.
Even before After Everything was officially announced, producers had confirmed development on a prequel film focused on young Hardin Scott. This story will dive into his troubled teenage years, exploring what made him the emotionally volatile man we met in the first film. Based loosely on Anna Todd’s novella Before, the prequel will not star Hero Fiennes Tiffin, as the role requires a younger actor. The film aims to provide context for Hardin’s destructive behaviors and showcase his early relationships and family dynamics. It promises a darker, more dramatic tone — and perhaps a few answers fans have long waited for.
There was early chatter about a spin-off following Tessa and Hardin’s children — a narrative explored in the After books’ epilogues. However, this project has since fallen into limbo, with no official casting or production updates. Whether this next-generation storyline comes to life may depend on the success of the prequel and ongoing fan interest. A One Tree Hill-style drama set in the After universe — with time to explore side characters like Landon, Molly, or Zed — could be a fresh way to reimagine the saga for a new audience. Despite mixed critical reviews, the After movies have built a global fan empire. The messy, intense, and often toxic relationship between Tessa and Hardin mirrors the real-world complexities of first love and emotional growth. Fans aren’t just watching a romance — they’re watching a long, painful, and often frustrating journey of two people trying (and often failing) to love each other in healthy ways.
Each film has sparked intense online conversations about trauma, growth, and redemption. And that emotional investment is what makes fans hungry for more — even if the story has technically ended. While After Ever Happy may have originally been marketed as the finale, it now serves as the emotional climax of the series, with After Everything delivering the final goodbye. Yet with a prequel already in development and a potential spin-off still possible, the franchise is not entirely finished — just shifting focus.
