*Warning: spoilers ahead*
Alex Lawther both frightened and enamored us as the sociopathic lead in Netflix’s The End of the Fucking World. His character has an ambiguous fate, as the series cuts to black before we can see if he lives or not. Naturally, fans are wondering if there will be a season two of the breakout show. Turns out Alex is more than down to play his iconic character again, but the choice isn’t really up to him. “I’m the last person that hears about these things,” the British actor said in a new interview with NME.
Alex then admits he can’t imagine what would happen next for James. “Where would it go though?” he asks. “Me and Charlie Cavell chat all the time so I’m sure he’d come up with something brilliant. But ultimately, it’s up to whoever is the decider. I’m not really sure who that person is… If anyone has their phone number, they should call them and tell them it’s a good idea!” Perhaps we could watch the genius antihero navigate the ins and outs of the prison system.
Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why is also a teen drama that appeared to have a clear-cut ending, but the streaming platform still decided to go ahead with a season. So it’s not a leap to imagine Netflix doing the same with The End of the Fucking World.
There is wiggle room in the show’s future. Just like us, Alex is not really sure if James lives or dies at the end of the show. An optimist, Alex would like to think things don’t end so grimly for his character. “A part of me thinks it’s almost too perfect, too Romeo and Juliet if he died. I don’t think James and Alyssa would stand for that. They’d think they were more complicated than that. They’re not hopeless romantics and life isn’t like that. Life is not a Shakespearean tragedy, there’s more mundanity. Given the tone of the series, it might be interesting if they actually had to deal with the consequences of their actions.”
The original ending of The End of the Fucking World was more definitive. In it, James definitely dies. Saving us from heartbreak, the director and producers decided to go with a more ambiguous approach. “I really like that because it means we can do a second season.”
Thankfully, we’re now able to watch Alex star in another dark, twisted drama. The young star acts in the new horror film Ghost Stories, playing a young man who encounters a supernatural being in the woods. It’s not James, but it’s close enough.