The Devastating Ending Of Five Feet Apart, Explained - Refinery29

Skip navigation!ADVERTISEMENTStory from MoviesADVERTISEMENTThe Devastating Ending Of Five Feet Apart, ExplainedKaitlin ReillyMarch 15, 2019, 2:30 PM Photo: Courtesy of Alfonso Bresciani/EPK. As The Fault In Our Stars taught us, a movie about teen lovers living with a medical issue is ripe for a heartbreaking ending. Five Feet Apart’s conclusion not only has us reaching for the tissues, but going through the entire box.In the film, Stella (Haley Lu Richardson), a teen meticulously managing her cystic fibrosis, meets Will (Cole Sprouse), a boy with the same genetic disorder who takes a more relaxed approach to his medical regimen. Stella — who admits she has control issues — attempts to make over Will’s medical plan, and, along the way, the two teens fall head over heels for one another.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTThe only issue is that Stella and Will can never actually touch — or even be within six feet of one another, due to the fear of cross-infection. A big, epic kiss (the climax of many a romantic drama) is firmly off the table. If Stella catches Will’s bacteria, or Will catches hers, either could die, which is assured to them by Nurse Barb (Kimberly Hebert Gregory) who has seen this very thing happen between two teen lovers in her care. Stella and Will are pretty good about this rule (though they do steal one foot back, hence the title of the film) until Stella’s best friend and fellow cystic fibrosis patient Poe (Moises Arias) dies. Overwhelmed with grief, Stella demands Will go with her on a snowy stroll through the park to see the lights of the city that she has been limited to gazing at from the hospital roof.While hanging out on a frozen lake, Stella and Will almost kiss — but Will pushes her away, reminding Stella that they can’t do this for their own health. It’s moments later Stella gets the call that there is a brand-new pair of lungs waiting for her at the hospital...should she show up to claim them. Heartbroken over Poe and frustrated with all she can’t do, Stella ignores the call, which frustrates Will.Then, while on the bridge above the lake, Stella falls, sending her body plummeting through the ice and into the water.Will pulls Stella out, but she’s not breathing. The only choice? Perform mouth-to-mouth...aka, the very thing that could put Will and Stella in grave danger.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTStella and Will are rushed to the hospital, where she receives her new lungs. Will learns from Barb that, by some miracle, Stella did not catch Will’s bacteria — though it doesn’t mean she won’t suffer consequences from their “forbidden kiss” down the line. As for Will, the experimental drug he’s hoped would save his life isn’t working...which means that Will’s time is running out.Will realizes that he has to say goodbye to Stella. So, he gives her one final parting gift: the “lights” of the city that she wanted to see on their snowy walk. He creates a beautiful art installation, then tearfully tells Stella (through the glass of the recovery room where she lies following her lung transplant) that she has to continue to live, even if he won’t be around. And, of course, the two share “I love yous.” (Though, by this point, you may be a blubbering mess and miss them over the sound of your own sobs.)We don’t see Will’s death, but it’s heavily implied that he will not survive for much longer, and that Stella is reflecting back on her time with him. However, in Cole Sprouse's interview with Refinery29, he insists that, ""We wanted to keep the ending open for interpretation," which means that, technically, Will could survive his illness...even if it's not with Stella. In fact, a happier ending may even exist."We actually filmed a lot of different endings," Sprouse tells Refinery29. "A lot of people who saw the movie assume that he lived. It’s intentionally open. I won’t speak too much about it because I want people to have their own feelings about it, but yes, we filmed a handful of different endings, and some endings were more concrete."Whether Will does survive CF, the tragedy, of course, remains: Will and Stella cannot be together without putting the other in danger. However, the movie makes clear that the love they share can never truly die.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT EntertainmentWuthering Heights’ Margot Robbie Says Cathy & Isabella Fig...There’s a lot to talk about when it comes to Wuthering Heights. I’m sure we’ll be dissecting and debating it for weeks. From the whitewashing controvby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentEmerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights Whitewashed Heathcliff...Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights opens with a scene I hated so much, I almost walked out of the theater. Don’t worry, it goes up from there! The sceby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentThe Gallerist: Natalie Portman & Jenna Ortega Lead Messy, ...Ambition is a hell of a drug. In Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist, which premiered at Sundance last weekend, two women trying to make it in the art world coby Kathleen Newman-B...AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTEntertainmentThe Moment Doesn’t Take Charli XCX Seriously & Neither Sho...Mild spoilers ahead. Charli XCX hates being famous. She’s also terrified of becoming irrelevant. She loves pop music but couldn’t care less about beingby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentPeople We Meet On Vacation‘s Emily Bader & Tom Blyth...For years, romance fans have been patiently waiting for our fave romance novels to be adapted into movies. During the onscreen rom-com drought of the past by Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentHow Does The People We Meet On Vacation Movie Differ From ...As someone who grew up in fandom, the People We Meet On Vacation screenwriter Yulin Kuang knows the importance of a good book-to-screen adaptation more thaby Rachel ChoyEntertainmentThe Best Performances Of The Year Were BlackWelcome to “What’s Good,” a column where we break down what’s soothing, distracting, or just plain good in Hollywood with a “rooting for everybodby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentTired Of Christmas Movies? These Comfort Films Are The Perfect Wi...by Melanie CurryEntertainmentEmma Mackey & Jamie Lee Curtis On Grief, Trauma & What Comes NextSpoilers ahead. Is it actually possible to recover from childhood trauma, or will the effects linger forever? That’s the question Ella McCay asks, thby Rachel ChoyEntertainmentAndra Day Says Bradley Cooper “Backed Up His Support” By Casting ...Is This Thing On? may not seem like a movie where you’d find Grammy-award winner and Oscar nominee Andra Day. It’s about a white man doing stand-up comby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentThe 55 Best Christmas Movies To Get You Into The Festive Spiritby Alexandra KosterEntertainmentPaul Mescal & Jessie Buckley Know Hamnet Is Going To Make ...I was warned about Hamnet. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a crier and that I am easily susceptible to emotional manipulation; whether it’s a schmaltby Kathleen Newman-B...AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENT