If you’ve spent any time on Netflix this week, chances are you’ve scrolled through your suggested list and found the movie Forever My Girl — that is if it wasn’t already added to your list of favorites. The sweet love story is a favorite for those who’ve been familiar with it since 2018, but this time of year is the perfect time to discover it for the first time or to fall in love with it once more.
There’s something about summertime that makes the romance genre even sweeter. Maybe it’s the warm summer nights, the way sun-kissed skin is warm and inviting, or how there’s a special kind of magic in the air that makes love seem more tangible — whatever it is, summer love stories are our favorite. They’re thought-provoking, butterflies-in-your-stomach inducing, and electric in a way no other heartwarming stories are.
So it’s not surprising that you might have heard your romance-loving friends talk about Forever My Girl, and probably with tears in their eyes as they do so. With a powerful love story at the heart of it all, relatable characters that are easy to root for, and songs that will get stuck in your head and remind you of your own loves and losses, Forever My Girl has it all.
If you’ve quickly become a fan of the film, you might be wondering if the story is based upon a tale of heartache and healing between real people, and lucky for you — we’ve got it covered.
Is Forever My Girl based on a true story?
Forever My Girl isn’t based on a real love story, but there is something that inspired Heidi McLaughlin, an author, to write a book of the same name. The writer saw a social media post, and an idea was born there. A process that she explains to USA Today:
“I saw an image of a guy on Facebook who looked like he was trying to apologize. For what, I didn’t know until I gave him a name, which took a whole 10 or 15 minutes. That night, I wrote the first 5,000 words.”
McLaughlin couldn’t have known what he was apologizing for; she didn’t know his name or where he came from, and there’s no telling if his life mirrored Liam Pages’ at all, but the character was born from that image, and from there the rest of the story came to exist. As many authors do, McLaughlin also said that there were people in her life that inspired some of the character personality traits, but there’s no Liam or Josie out there — unless, of course, we simply don’t know about it.
The love story they share is one that some people, in relationships or out of them, can most assuredly relate to. There are chapters in our lives that are full of defining moments, choices we make that change everything, so while you may not have left someone at the altar to chase a dream, you might have set aside a relationship to follow a path you felt necessary at the time. It’s also possible that you might have been on the receiving end of that choice and had to unpack and sort through that devastation and hurt.
While stories based on real-life love stories are lovely, a story without a hard connection to specific people allows the reader or viewer to piece together themselves or their loved ones in a beautiful way, and there’s a lot to be said about that level of imagination in all of us.
What is Forever My Girl?
A love story for the ages, Forever My Girl is Hallmark-esque in all the right ways, and it’s enough to pull that belief in first love, true love, and soulmates out of you once more. There’s something unique about this one, and while some would write off all love stories in this genre as cliche and overdone, this one carries a level of heart and emotion that will undeniably stick with you.
The synopsis for Forever My Girl reads as follows:
“Liam Page is a country music superstar who left his bride Josie at the altar to pursue fame and fortune. Page never got over Josie, his one true love, or forgot his southern roots in the small community where he was born and raised. Now, he must unexpectedly face the consequences of his actions when he returns to his hometown for the funeral of his best friend from high school.”
Both Liam and Josie play relatable characters; you can easily see yourself in pieces of their story — for better or for worse. You’ll also undeniably find yourself angry or baffled by some of their actions and responses and wowed by others; they’re two young adults who are brought together again by tragedy, and they’ve got a lot to work through to get back to versions of themselves they recognize, and interpretations of one another too.
Who are the stars of Forever My Girl?
Forever My Girl stars some well-known talent in the film; one name will most definitely stand out if you love horror. Josie is played by Jessica Rothe of Happy Death Day, and her beau Liam is played by Alex Roe of The Fugitives. Country singer Travis Tritt is also in the film, alongside Peter Cambor, Lauren Gros, and Abby Ryder Fortson, who steals the show as Billy Anne Swan.
If you’re looking for the perfect way to start your week (admitting, of course, that there will be tears), we recommend taking the time to fall in love with Forever My Girl.