A producer of the After series gave a promising update on the franchise’s future.
The series, produced by Voltage Pictures, begin in 2019 with the movie After, a love story based on a 2014 novel from Anna Todd which was originally a Harry Styles fanfic. It went on to create five different movies in total: After, After We Collided, After We Fell, After Ever Happy, and After Everything.
The series follows the intense and rocky love story between Josephine Langford and Hero Fiennes Tiffin’s Tessa Young and Hardin Scott.
The latest entry, released in 2023, had the privilege of not being entirely based on a previous book like the first four installments.
Fans still expect to see a prequel film based on the Before novella, which would follow Hardin before he met Tessa (along with story sections taking place during the previous entries and after the fifth movie). Sadly, there’s been no word on it since its announcement in 2021.
During an exclusive interview with producer Mark Canton while promoting his latest film, The Strangers: Chapter 1, the filmmaker shared an update with The Direct’s Russ Milheim about the status of the After series.
Canton confirmed how they are “working on more stories” and are “definitely not stopping:”
“We’re working on more stories. I don’t know what format they’ll be in. But we are definitely not stopping. That I can tell you.”
What Does the Future of After Look Like?
While the series’ momentum has notably slowed, waiting longer to continue the franchise would be a questionable choice.
However, there is probably some re-evaluation going on behind the scenes. The monetary gains have gone downhill, with the first making roughly $58 million at the domestic box office and the fifth entry barely breaching $8 million.
At this point, it’s surprising that the creatives haven’t tried expanding the franchise onto a streaming platform.
The series seems like the perfect fit for a TV show. It’s also relatively cheap to produce, so the studio’s return on investment could be well worth it.
While fans are still waiting for the Before prequel novella to get properly adapted, it’s worth noting that original stories could also be the path forward. This is something the studio has proven not to be scared to tackle, as the fifth movie, After Everything, shows.
