Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Language, sex, drinking in behind-the-scenes promo docu.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Beyond After
What's the Story?
Beyond After interviews many key people involved with the successful After franchise. These include the author of the original Wattpad fan fiction series and later books, Anna Todd, as well as the producers behind the films, the main actors (especially Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Josephine Langford), and the directors of the various films. They all offer insights into the process of writing the original texts and adapting them to books and then feature films. Narrated by actress Louise Lombard, who plays Trish in the films, the documentary also offers fan interviews and some never-before-seen footage from the film shoots.
Is It Any Good?
This making-of focusing on the five After movies is no objective piece of reporting—and that'll be absolutely fine with the franchise's many fans, for whom this behind-the-scenes film was clearly made. Beyond After is a piece of marketing that doesn't shy away from a fawning tone. "The entire cast and crew loved working with" the lead actors, and they in turn "are incredibly grateful to the fans," and the series "has changed the life of everyone" involved, to give a few examples. Besides some never-before-seen scenes, information won't be new for the franchise's legion of international fans, though they'll be happy to hear the hints of future spin-offs.
What is more interesting is the peek into the unique-for-its-time development of this series, originally based on hundreds of chapters written on a cell phone and published online (on Wattpad). Author Todd explains her inspiration and how the Wattpad fan fiction (which she says she wrote on her phone!) got condensed into books. The film players talk about landing the rights to the "IP" (intellectual property), switching studios, searching for actors, shooting in Bulgaria during COVID, and more. Reenactments of young girls reading the books weren't necessary, and while the fan interviews do add context, they feel somewhat randomly selected.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why they think fans react so much to the material, as described in Beyond After: one billion reads on Wattpad and books translated into 30 languages. Who are the main audiences for this franchise?
What did you learn from this movie about the worlds of publishing and filmmaking?
Do you think there will be further products to come from this franchise, as some interviewees hint in the documentary?
Were there places in this film where you would have appreciated a more critical or investigative approach? Can you give an example?
Have you read any other fan fiction or texts on Wattpad or elsewhere online that you think could be developed into a movie?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : October 25, 2024
- Cast : Hero Fiennes Tiffin , Josephine Langford , Louise Lombard
- Director : Didier Allouch
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Voltage Pictures
- Genre : Documentary
- Topics : Book Characters
- Run time : 93 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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