Divergent series fans are simultaneously pumped and nervous about the film adaptation of Allegiant, which promises some differences from the book. For starters, Allegiant has been broken up into two parts. Although this isn't the first YA film franchise to do a two-movie split (looking at you, Hunger Games), it still poses questions about potential changes to the narrative. One major question that fans have been asking is whether Allegiant the movie will have a different ending from the book. This question is particularly pertinent for the Divergent series because — *spoiler alert* — it's one of the rare book series in which the main character dies at the end. Yes, in the book version of Allegiant, Tris Prior sacrifices her life. But given that Divergent movie fans are really attached to Tris — plus the fact that the film series' target demographic is largely tweens and teens — is it likely that the heroine will suffer an onscreen death?
The first thing to remember is that, even if the series ending is the same, Tris' death wouldn't be happening in Allegiant anyways, considering that there are going to be two films. The third movie keeps the novel's name Allegiant, while the fourth movie will be called Ascendant. So if Tris did end up dying in the cinematic franchise, that would happen in the fourth film, not Allegiant. In the meantime, the third film will take the viewer through approximately the first half of Allegiant the book.
What about the series ending as a whole, though? Author Veronica Roth had previously defended the ending of the book Allegiant , stating that giving Tris a traditional happy ending wouldn't do justice to the character's growth throughout the series. As Roth explained to MTV News in 2013, "This is a very intense transformation that she undergoes, and to have her just be like, 'OK, well, we saved the day. Let’s wander off into the sunset together,' it just didn’t feel right. She earned a more powerful ending to her story than that.”
However, it is possible that the movie Allegiant will have a more fan-friendly ending. Roth told MTV News that there would be "some changes" between the book and the film, although the specifics of such "changes" have not yet been revealed. Some fans are adamant that the ending be altered, going so far as to start a Change.org petition entitled "Let Tris Live in the Last Divergent Movie."
Lionsgate is certainly aware of the demand for a different ending, and in turn they've given Ascendant the tantalizing tagline "The End Is Never What You Expect." But will all the brouhaha translate to a more lively finale for Tris? You'll have to wait and see.
Images: Lionsgate, Giphy (2)
