Isabel "Belly" Conklin stole the hearts of millions over a decade ago as the main character in Jenny Han's young adult romance series. In 2009, Belly was a two-dimensional girl with teenage girl struggles and boy best friends. She was simply Susannah's "special girl" and future Mrs. Fisher. In July 2022, Amazon Prime Video answered our prayers, bringing The Summer I Turned Pretty to the small screen.
Our hearts were even more overjoyed with the on-point casting of Belly (Lola Tung), Conrad (Christopher Briney), and Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno). We couldn't wait to binge-watch the story all over again. After 13 years, a teen girl series made our hearts swell in new ways. Romance fans agree that Jenny Han knows how to break and repair our hearts through magical romances and friendships.
Jenny Han has been heavily involved on the set of The Summer I Turned Pretty with storyline consistency and actor chemistry. Fans hardly have any complaints about the adaptation. So far, the show has only tweaked a few things while closely following the books, but fans remain concerned Jenny Han might have changed the ending from Belly marrying Conrad to her ending up alone. This fear comes from Amazon Prime Video's season three announcement poster. Unlike previous seasons where Belly was accompanied by her family and friends, she stands alone in a yellow gown with a floral backdrop as she gazes over her shoulder.
Would book fans be okay with an alternate ending? No, we wouldn't. Many fans expressed their fears about an alternative ending on TikTok, using the hashtag #thesummeriturnedpretty to react to the new poster. I came across these reactions on my "For You" page from the creator @divideitwithgill. I commented: "I don't think Jenny Han would go that far off script from book 3. I think the poster represents growth and that Belly isn't just Belly because of a boy."
In the overall sense of Belly's story, we've come to understand why she could end up alone. In a Just Jared 2023 interview, Jenny Han assured fans that we'd "see Belly really coming into her own and growing in many ways" in season 3. If flowers blossom and change — like the floral shown on the poster — then so can Belly. She's free to be herself as she follows her heart. We know Jenny wouldn't destroy our favorite girl's heart in the final season. She'd let it bloom. Jenny knows better for her characters. She created them, carved out their stories, and set them on a path for love. She knows what she's doing.
The Summer I Turned Pretty returns for its third and final season in July on Prime Video.