Jennifer Lawrence made her debut in a full-fledged comedy, and No Hard Feelings’ ending takes a heartfelt turn as the characters move past their hurdles. The film, directed by Gene Stupnitsky from a screenplay he co-wrote with John Phillips, is focused on Lawrence’s Maddie, a Montauk local hired to bring the introverted 19-year-old Percy out of his shell before he goes off to Princeton. Billed as a raunchy comedy, No Hard Feelings has plenty of emotional beats and character development as Maddie and Percy settle into a genuine friendship.

No Hard Feelings has a simple premise, and its conflict arises when Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman) learns that Maddie, who is struggling financially and is on the verge of losing her house, only sought him out after his parents placed an ad to help him before he went to college. By the end of No Hard Feelings, Maddie and Percy helped each other grow. Maddie was able to open up emotionally and financially afford to move to California. Meanwhile, Percy gained confidence and friends, being able to leave his room without fear of social stigma.

Maddie & Percy: Will They Remain Friends?

They Likely Won’t See Each Other Much But Can Keep In Touch

When Percy thinks he and Maddie are in a relationship, they discuss the option of long-distance, but Maddie is against it. Mostly, it’s because Maddie knows that they’re not really in a romantic relationship, but it’s also because she can’t see them staying in touch when they’re so far away from each other. At the end of No Hard Feelings, Percy says he’ll be back in Montauk for Thanksgiving, but Maddie will be in California, which provides yet another roadblock to their ongoing friendship.

While Percy and Maddie will likely keep in touch for a few months, it’s possible Percy will become too busy at Princeton to check in constantly. Maddie will also have her hands full getting settled in California, especially after living in Montauk all her life. No Hard Feelings’ geographically splitting up Maddie and Percy doesn’t mean they won’t stay friends long-term, but there is a kind of friendship that allows them to get out of their own way, addressing their fears so that they can move forward instead of being stuck in the past.

Their relationship was a success, so even if they don’t remain close after parting ways in No Hard Feelings, they will remember how they helped each other. In that sense, Maddie and Percy will always be friends.

Maddie’s Move To California Explained

She Needed To Move On

Maddie refuses to sell her mom’s house throughout No Hard Feelings, opting to win the car Percy’s parents promised her, so she can Uber and pay off the house’s property taxes. By the end of the film, though, Maddie sells the house and uses the money to pack up and move to California after getting a bit of a reality check from Percy. She realizes she’s been stuck in the past while blaming everyone else for the decisions she’s made about her life.

Maddie was angry for good reason, but she had been clinging to the rejection she felt from her father, who didn’t want anything to do with her. Moving to California was an unfulfilled dream for Maddie, but it wasn’t until she could break free from her fear of change that she could finally uproot her life. Maddie realized that she didn’t need her father to contact her, and she could figure things out on her own with people who genuinely cared for her.

Selling her mother’s house was the final step in letting the past go, allowing Maddie to take big risks and do something for herself that required a bit of bravery.

The Deep Meaning Behind Maddie Adopting Milo

Milo Is A Part Of Maddie And Percy

At the start of No Hard Feelings, Maddie attempts to fake adopt Milo in a bid to meet Percy, but she doesn’t go through with it because she’s so focused on sleeping with Percy and getting the car. However, Maddie winds up adopting Milo and taking him with her to California because the dog has sentimental value to her. Milo is a big part of her journey with Percy, and Maddie likely wanted to adopt the dog as a reminder of the friendship she forged with him, and all that they went through together.

While she isn’t initially fit to care for the dog, Maddie takes responsibility for Milo in a way she couldn’t have before. Maddie also knows what it’s like to be abandoned, and promising to adopt Milo but not following through would have brought up comparisons to her father, which is not who she was as a person.

Milo has obvious issues, but also has the capacity to love and be loved if given the chance, echoing Maddie’s own emotional throughline in the film. Not only is Milo a reminder of the friendship she forged with Percy, but the canine will also serve as a nice connection with Montauk.

Does No Hard Feelings Signal A Career Shift For Jennifer Lawrence?

The Actress Was Great In A Comedic Role

No Hard Feelings marks the first major comedy for Jennifer Lawrence. Silver Linings Playbook came the closest, but it was more of a dramedy that she was occasionally funny in. No Hard Feelings has an old-school comedy feel to it, and Lawrence gets to be raunchy, tough, and outrightly funny in it. After starring in dramas for so long, No Hard Feelings could signal a career shift for the actress, whose biggest roles have included franchise flicks like The Hunger Games and X-Men: First Class to hardcore dramas like Red Sparrow, Causeway, and mother!

Lawrence’s upcoming projects may not be comedies like No Hard Feelings, but they will allow the actress to flex her acting skills in a variety of genres beyond the drama variety. Lawrence will star in a crime drama and a horror thriller with Mob Girl and Die, My Love, respectively.

That said, audiences shouldn’t expect Lawrence to deviate too much from the kinds of films she’s done in the past, as the actress will also appear in dramas and biopics in the near future. It seems a straight-up comedy is not in the cards anytime soon, but it doesn’t mean Lawrence won’t return to the genre later in her career.

How No Hard Feelings Compares To Other Raunchy Comedies

It’s The Latest In A Long Line Of Great Similar Comedies

No Hard Feelings has been marketed as a raunchy comedy, and it certainly has those elements throughout, though it’s also very heartwarming. While it’s vulgar to an extent, and there’s a good amount of nudity, No Hard Feelings is not as raunchy as films like Wedding Crashers or Bridesmaids, which take their brand of comedy to another level.

No Hard Feelings is a callback to raunchy comedies of old, but it’s a bit more tame, and perhaps less offensive, than others in the genre, including Bad Santa and Ted. No Hard Feelings, while on the lighter side in terms of its crudeness, is still raunchy enough to justify its label.

The Real Meaning Of No Hard Feelings’ Ending

Maddie & Percy Had To Find Their Place In The World

The No Hard Feelings’ ending showed that this was a coming-of-age story about both Maddie and Percy finding their places in the world, rather than a romantic comedy. This caused several viewers to misinterpret the film, which could have been troublesome since Maddie is in her 30s and Percy is a 19-year-old on his way to college. Instead of seeing the two “hook up” or end up together, which would have been wrong on several levels, it was about Maddie learning that she needed to fix her life and Percy coming out of his shell.

Before the movie’s story began, Maddie had no idea what she wanted to do with her life or how she was going to financially survive in Montauk, New York. Percy’s parents had no idea how he would manage to get through college, being as introverted and awkward as he is. By the end, Maddie learns her place is away from Montauk and Percy finally comes out of his shell. This is a film about people finding their true selves, not about anyone finding love.

How The No Hard Feelings Ending Was Received

Fans Were Split On The Ending

As expected, many viewers were confused by the No Hard Feelings’ genre. This was not a romantic comedy, even though the plot suggested otherwise. That was troublesome from the start, since Maddie is 32 and Percy is 19, and the entire idea of them ending up together was problematic. However, some fans still wanted to see it, with one Redditor writing, “Is it just me or was the ending a little off? Kinda depressed me. Felt like they should have gotten back together. Maybe it’s just me relating to what the guy went through but it just felt very off.“

However, this led to some responses that stated that the ending felt wrong, even though they shouldn’t have ended up together. “It would’ve been creepy if they ended up together,” another Redditor said. “Really there was no other way to end it. I didn’t really care much for the ending either, but I can’t think of anything better.” Another commenter said why the ending was perfect:

“As much as I also wanted them to have a happily ever after, it just wouldn’t work because it doesn’t fit the theme of moving on from the anchors of your past. Having a 19 year old freshman be anchored down by a 32 year old who followed her from the other coast would not show growth in Maddie. If she really loved him, she would let him go and grow, which is exactly what she did.”

On the whole, audiences loved No Hard Feelings more than critics, with an 86% audience score compared to the 70% critics Rotten Tomatoes rating. When reviewing the movie, Leonerd Maltin wrote, “The filmmakers thankfully keep one toe dipped in reality so that when they want us to care about these cartoonish creatures we do—just enough to allow the plot threads to be tied up in a satisfying way.“