We discuss the ending of the 2023 film No Hard Feelings, which will contain significant spoilers and plot twists.
The comedy No Hard Feelings follows Maddie, a woman in her early thirties stuck in her own arrested development. Still a party girl, she grew up in the ocean-side community and is being priced out of her home.
That’s because the rich have bought up properties, raising Maddie’s property taxes, and now have a lien on her home left to her by her late mother.
No Hard Feelings (2023) Ending Explained
Maddie plans to pay off the $22,000 fee by bartending and ridesharing through the summer when the community is inundated with these affluent summer dwellers. However, her ex-boyfriend repossesses her only car, putting a speed bump in that plan by the fall. Thankfully, Maddie finds an online ad for the parents of a shy and sensitive 19-year-old man about to leave for Princeton.
Why do Percy’s parents hire Maddie?
Percy’s parents hire Maddie to “encourage” their son to be more outgoing, sociable, and confident in himself. They feel Percy is introverted, often staying in his room to play video games (Percy tells Maddie his only friends are online). Percy’s parents are worried that going to college in Princeton will damage Percy’s confidence even further since he has yet to live life to the fullest.
READ: Movies like No Hard Feelings
That means dating, going to parties, and maybe even a little light drinking, and losing his virginity. While they do not explicitly say it, they want Maddie to date Percy “hard.” This way, they feel he will have some experiences to draw upon while living on campus in the hallowed halls of the esteemed Ivy League school, Princeton. In return, Maddie will be given their used car, a Buick Regal.
How does Percy find out his parents hired Maddie?
Percy discovers that his parents hired Maddie to date him when the Bluetooth in his parent’s Tesla is activated, and he accidentally listens to their conversation. Percy’s parents call Maddie when their son tells them he has decided not to go to Princeton. Percy has decided to stay in town and work to be closer to Maddie, continue dating her, and not travel long distances.
Why does Maddie decide to sleep with Percy?
After talking in his bedroom, Percy sleeps with Maddie after he comes clean about knowing Maddie was hired by his parents. After finding this out, he invites Maddie to dinner with his parents, where he is openly rude to them, especially Maddie. Percy excuses himself, takes the Buick Regal meant for Maggie, and vandalizes it by running the car into a tree, breaking the window, and the hood is caved in from a fallen branch.
After letting Percy verbally express his frustrations and disappointment with Maddie, he calms down and tells Maddie he’s ready to have sex. Maddie undresses, gets under the covers, and Percy gets on top of her. Percy ejaculates early, per Maddie, on her thighs, but he asks if she finished as well.
Before she leaves, Percy insults Maddie by telling her she won’t open up because she’s still waiting for approval from the father that abandoned her.
How does Maddie save her mom’s house?
Maddie saves her mom’s home by paying back the property taxes and fines totaling over 22,000 dollars by bartending and continuing to work as a driver for a rideshare company. That’s because Percy put the Buick Regal in Maddie’s name and has it delivered to her home. Maddie wants to turn her life around after another meaningless fling with another man who lacks respect for her.
Maddie decides she wants more out of life, like a relationship where the man wants to get to know her as Percy did. Realizing she’s no longer happy in her hometown, she decides to sell her home to her best friend Sarah so she and her husband do not have to move to Florida at a discounted price.
Maddie decides to move to California but knows she has to make amends with Percy first.
Who drives Percy to Princeton?
Maddie drives Percy to Princeton before she heads out to live in California. Before this, Maddie locates Percy at a Princeton mixer and forces him to talk to her. Initially refusing, Maddie jumps on the hood of his car, and he drives onto the beach and into the water.
Percy climbs out and helps Maddie to the beach. Maddie and Percy talk, bonded through their experience, and are friends again.
Percy now has more confidence and discovered autonomy he never knew he had. Percy tells his parents he wants to head to school alone.
When he gets outside to the driveway, Maddie waits for him with the dog she adopted from the animal shelter where Percy volunteered during the summer.
What did you think of the ending of the 2023 film No Hard Feelings? Comment below.
