In 2006, a popular writing platform that doubled as a reading platform for dedicated fans was created. We know this platform as Wattpad, home to some of the most popular fan-written stories centered around different fictional characters. Now, Wattpad didn’t start out as a fan-fiction-driven site. As time has passed, many stories have been turned into live adaptations and franchises, and in recent years, more books from this website have received the privilege of being turned into movies to promote the site and the authors.

Now, while many of these stories do seem to have some potential to become big hits due to the plot, there is a small gray area they have to hit amidst the black-and-white of good and bad movies. At first glance, they seem to stand out in the industry after the release, and from there the internet seems to ‘go crazy’ for the movie. This can be from the actors that portray these magical characters, or the chemistry they share with their co-stars. However, shortly after the release, most of these ‘hits’ blend into the background, only to be forgotten in the land of decently done adaptations. 

One of the most notable adaptations to come from Wattpad is the hit film “After”, released early in 2019. When the film first hit theaters, fans from all over the world gathered to admire the film’s actors, Josephine Langford, who plays the leading lady, and her co-star Hero Fiennes Tiffin, who plays the ‘heartthrob’ in the movie and is the main love interest to Langford’s character Tessa.

Since the initial release in 2019, four movies have been released following the characters from the first movie, accompanying them through their love lives, their many breakups, new jobs, and their ‘coming of age’ trying to ‘find themselves.’

Following its release in theaters, “After” made about 69.7 million dollars worldwide, but since then, none of the films accompanying it have made anything close to that. This shows that the grey area of success was reached with the first movie, but the other four pushed it over to the point where there was most likely more loss than gain.

“After” was an example of romance stories becoming popular in the media again, especially the film industry, with various film series taking off, promoting books written in a similar light to the “After” films. Another example that didn’t come from Wattpad, but does follow the general outline of the plot is the hit book “It Ends with Us” by Colleen Hoover. 

However, this new ‘trend’ doesn’t stop with the “After” film series taking off. Recently, a new movie called “Sidelined: the QB and Me,” was released to the streaming platform Tubi. The movie follows the story of Dallas Bryan, played by Siena Agudong, and Drayton Lahey, played by former TikTok star Noah Beck. 

The movie follows the same guidelines, with young love flourishing after many breakups and many past struggles getting in the way of the main couple’s happiness. Not too long after its release, it fell into the same patterns as the “After” movie series, announcing a sequel to the movie that will begin filming soon. 

This new ‘movie trend’ with repeated stories from the popular writing website has started to establish itself as part of the ‘new film industry,’ marking its territory in the future of moviemaking and Hollywood. While romance movies are fun to watch, re-using the same plot and recycling the same characters in different fonts will get old fast, leaving these films forgotten in the industry, crossed off as nothing more than a silly passion project.