Just two more episodes are left from The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, and fans (us included) are just itching to see how the infamous love triangle between Belly, Jeremiah, and his brother Conrad wraps up once and for all.
The show's writer Jenny Han has already revealed that the show, which is based on her three-part book series, will not end in the same way as the books. “I always knew how I wanted to end the books. But with the show, I went into it with an open mind,” she said in an interview with Elite Daily. “I wanted to approach it with fresh eyes and just see what sort of magic happened on screen. I am somebody who is always changing things up.”
If you've read the books, you'll know that—spoiler alert—Belly ends up getting married to Conrad years after calling off the wedding with Jeremiah, but Jenny has said that loyal fans may end up being surprised by the new ending.
She added: “People will be like, ‘Why are you changing that? That was working well!’ But to me, it could always be better. That’s how I approach everything, so naturally I was going into this story feeling like I wanted to make it even better and try new things.”
With so much mystery around the ending, fans have been sharing their theories on how TSITP season 3 might end, and there's some major clues that seem to have given away the finale.
Here's everything you need to know.
Theory 1: Conrad Visits Belly in Paris and they get back together
In the books, Belly heads to Spain to study abroad and it's there that she and Conrad reconnect through letters. But they don’t actually reunite in person until her college graduation, and years later, the pair eventually get married.
BTS set photos have fans wondering if the show might fast-track their reunion, however. Some images have been circulating on TikTok of Christopher Briney on set in Paris with Lola Tung, which is a major giveaway that a Belly and Conrad reunion could be happening sooner rather than later.
In the pictures, the pair can be seen taking a stroll around the streets of Paris, before going in for a kiss. In another image, they're sat together while on a tour bus of the city.
“Thank God, I can't wait,” one fan commented on the photos.
“Bonrad fans we will win in the end,” another said.
Theory 2: An open ending
Other fans are speculating that the ending could be left open to interpretation, with viewers having to make their own decisions about who Belly actually ends up with.
Taking to TikTok, one fan said: “I think Belly will end up staying in Paris for a while. I think she will be visited by both Jeremiah and Conrad and for the short term, she will basically pick herself. I think then we're going to get a jump five or ten years into the future to Steven and Taylor's wedding. At which point, Belly and Conrad will see each other after losing contact and it will be a more open ended interpretation, like do they get together or do they not. It won't be 100%.”
A lot of fans weren't keen on this possibility, however, with one saying: “Nah, if Belly and Conrad don't clearly get together, I think I'm gonna lose it.”
Lola herself has hinted that the show might leave viewers feeling a little “heartbroken,” which suggests that loyal fans might not get the ending they want—Belly to end up with Conrad.
“Everybody at some point throughout the show, throughout all three seasons, will be a little bit heartbroken,” Lola told E! News. “It's just how it goes. And there is heartache that comes with love and with big love stories and with complicated love stories.”
She added: “I hope that they are satisfied with the story and the journey because I think Jenny did such a good job with it. We had so much fun filming it and I feel very proud of it. I think it's going to be pretty epic.”
Theory 3: Jere and Denise end up together
Although there's not a lot of evidence apart from that one scene when Jeremiah was checking out Denise at work, fans think that these two could end up together.
It wouldn't be the worse thing!
Theory 4: Steven and Taylor are endgame
While their romance didn't feature in the books, Steven and Taylor's love story is definitely the one we didn't know we needed from TSITP universe.
Yes, they started out the season as FWBs because she had a boyfriend and then decided to call it off, with Steven then moving onto Denise and Tay playing wingman. But, things are once again looking promising for them.
Steven and Denise decided they're better as friends, Steven came to Tay's defense when Belly shouted at her and they were super flirty at the wedding. And in the most recent episode, they got back together and dropped the L-bomb.
Maybe the wedding we're all waiting for is Staylor's.
Theory 5: Belly chooses herself
With Han hinting that the ending to series will be different, there's lots of fan theories that the ending could have a bigger focus on Belly's career and life plans.
“A viable ending to me would be her realizing that well most of her life so far has circulated around the Fisher boys and it's time she realizes that who she wants to be with isn't all in life. In the ending she possibly finds what she wants to do in life, whether that's with Conrad or not is something I'm wondering (I hope it is),” one fan wrote on Reddit.
With just two episodes left, it won't be long until we see it all unfold. We can't wait.
New episodes of The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 drop Wednesdays on Prime Video.
