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Netflix's heartwarming coming-of-age drama series Heartstopperhas come to an end. This time, not as a new season, but a final film, Heartstopper Forever.
The decision was announced in April 2025, and the film officially premiered on Netflix on July 17. Luckily, Heartstopper Forever honored the characters and the story the way it did in the three released seasons. Right after its debut, Heartstopper Forever enchanted both critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes.
Critics & Audiences Loved Heartstopper Forever
The feature film currently features a 93% approval score from critics out of 27 reviews, and the same score from the audience.
But Why Tho's Kate Sánchez argues, "Heartstopper Forever isn’t just the best representation of queer romance; it’s also the healthiest look at the messiness of life on TV." Variety's Aramide Tinubu wrote, "A mature and elevated swan song, the movie delivers a fitting goodbye while giving fans a glimpse at the perfect epilogue."
New York Times' Chris Azzopardi wrote, "The film builds on the series’ radical promise: care without end. Care for your boyfriend. Care for your trans friend who needs you right now. Care for ourselves while caring for someone else. But the idea of what loving someone means has grown up."
The positive reaction to the finale doesn't come as a surprise, considering the Netflix show boasts a 98% approval score across all three seasons and 95% from the audience.
What Happens in Heartstopper Forever?
The heartwarming, coming-of-age drama series premiered on Netflix in 2022, introducing Nick and Charlie, two classmates who later discover their attraction to each other. Season 1 mostly dealt with Nick's coming out as he figured out who he was, before admitting that he was bisexual. He also decided to give his relationship with Charlie a go.
In Seasons 2 and 3, their relationship grew stronger as they dealt with different problems, including Charlie's ED. At the end of Season 3, Nick was preparing to leave for university, which the new film tackles. The show also focused on their diverse group of friends, as all of them handled first love, their identities, and learned what they wanted to do.
In Heartstopper Forever, which is based on Alice Oseman's sixth volume of the Heartstopper webcomic series, Charlie finds new independence at school, but the reality of a long-distance relationship begins to weigh on him and Nick. Doubts take hold, and their relationship faces its biggest challenge yet.
Meanwhile, their friends are also navigating the ups and downs of love and friendship, confronting the bittersweet challenges of growing up and moving on. Can first loves really last forever?
Kit Connor and Joe Locke returned as Nick and Charlie, respectively, but all the fan-favorites returned too. Heartstopper Forever also stars Yasmin Finney as Elle Argent, Will Gao as Tao Xu, Corinna Brown as Tara Jones, Kizzy Edgell as Darcy Olsson, Tobie Donovan as Isaac Henderson, Rhea Norwood as Imogen Heaney, Jenny Walser as Tori Spring, Fisayo Akinade as Mr. Ajayi, Nima Taleghani as Mr. Farouk, Leila Khan as Sahar Zahid, Bradley Riches as James McEwan, Darragh Hand as Michael Holden, and Eddie Marsan as Geoff Young.
Anna Maxwell Martin (Motherland, Ludwig) and Derek Jacobi (Last Tango in Halifax; Gladiator) joined the cast of the movie finale. Martin replaced Olivia Colman, who played Sarah Nelson, Nick's mother, in Seasons 1 and 2.
Heartstopper Forever is streaming on Netflix. The series will also receive a behind-the-scenes special, Heartstopper: Ending on a Hi, which premieres on July 24.
