This is why the One Day ending is so tragic, according to the crew

One Day is the series everyone’s been talking about right now and for good reason. The series is based on David Nicholls’ 2009 novel which was followed by a film adaptation starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess in 2011. The episodes follow a chronological structure in which we check in with Emma and Dexter on the 15th of July to see what the pair are up to. Despite the first episode being set in 1988 the series feels modern yet also nostalgic.

The series stars Ambika Mod who plays Emma Morley and Leo Woodall who plays Dexter Mayhew. Emma and Dexter initially meet at their Grad ball at Edinburgh University where they have a one-night stand, that wasn’t technically a one-night stand. The pair are opposites with Emma being from a working-class household in Leeds while Dexter cruises through life with his privilege, wealth and charm. Emma is set on changing the world whilst Dexters focus is being on rich on famous.  Although their relationship doesn’t really make sense, from the beginning it feels like they’re soulmates.

During the series, the pair navigate their careers, individual romantic relationships and grief whilst trying to maintain their friendship – if that’s what you want to call it-  with one another. It’s the perfect rom com clearly.

*psa spoilers ahead*

After all the highs and lows of Emma and Dexter’s relationship, in Paris, they finally agree to be together. Unfortunately, this is short-lived as the end of the penultimate episode just as their story as a couple begins it’s cut short by a tragic accident which left us all sobbing (real). Emma gets hit by a car whilst on the way to a house viewing where Dexter is waiting for her. Cry.

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So, why exactly did One Day’s ending have to be so sad? 

One Day’s lead writer Nicole Taylor told Entertainment Weekly she did “reinterview it for its place in the piece” but felt Emma dying was necessary for the “structural and thematic integrity of the piece”.

She also highlights that “every young British woman has related to that girl” which is probably what makes Emma’s ending that little bit harder to swallow. “It’s so unbelievably heartbreaking — you feel a bit robbed” Leo Woodall also told Tudum.

However, despite the tragic ending that left us all in tears there was an emphasis on leaving the series on a hopeful note and the cast praised the final sequence in the last episode of the series.

Speaking to HuffPost UK before the show debuted Ambika Mod said “I think a few years ago we wanted to sit in our feelings and emotions and grief a little bit, but now I think it’s gone the other way and we like to watch things that are a bit joyful and hopeful. Which I think this show is.”

“They leave it very hopeful. It’s a very wholesome way to leave them.” Ambika added to Tudum.

Speaking about Dexter, Leo Woodall Told GQ  “He’s got his life back together over the last few years. He went through what he went through after she died, his relationship with his daughter is good. You can feel that he’s not moving on, but moving forward.”

“I knew, while filming it, that a lot of people would be feeling deep anguish during that final episode, but there’s also a sense of seeing a whole relationship and two lives, what they meant to each other. I think it was done very beautifully. It’s one of those things where anyone who experiences real grief will relate to that. It never goes away, but you just have to keep going.”

One Day is available to watch on Netflix now. For more like these One Day filming locations and all the latest Netflix news, drops and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• From Edinburgh Uni to Greece: All of the stunning real-life filming locations of One Day

• Who was Justin Eely? The story behind One Day’s mystery dedication

• The Cranberries to Blur: Every song on the vibey decade-spanning One Day soundtrack

Featured image credit via Netflix