It started with a book. Jenny Han, the mind behind the massive To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before success, basically bottled up the feeling of a humid, salt-crusted August and sold it to us. But when Prime Video brought The Summer I Turned Pretty to the screen, it became something much bigger than a teen drama. It’s a cultural touchstone for anyone who ever felt like they were stuck between being a kid and being an adult.
Belly Conklin isn’t your typical perfect protagonist. She’s messy. She makes mistakes. She breaks hearts and gets hers broken in return. That’s the draw.
The Love Triangle That Actually Divides Households
Usually, in these shows, you know who the girl is going to end up with by episode three. Not here. The debate between Team Conrad and Team Jeremiah is genuinely fierce. People have opinions. Strong ones.
Conrad Fisher is the classic "tortured soul." He’s moody, he’s brilliant, and he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. In the first season, we see him struggling with his mother Susannah’s secret illness, which explains why he’s so distant. But for some viewers, his "bad boy" silence is just frustrating.
Then you have Jeremiah. He’s the golden boy. He’s the sunshine. He’s the one who was always there for Belly when Conrad was pushing her away. If you value communication and consistency, you're probably Jeremiah all the way. But the show does a great job of showing how Jeremiah’s insecurity about being "second choice" starts to eat at him. It’s not just a romance; it’s a study of how different personality types handle grief and growth.
Why Cousins Beach Feels Like Home
Cousins Beach isn't real. Sorry to break it to you. Most of The Summer I Turned Pretty is actually filmed in Wilmington, North Carolina, and surrounding areas like Wrightsville Beach. But the show makes it feel like a character in itself.
There’s a specific nostalgia that the show taps into. It’s the feeling of a "summer house." The kind of place where the rules of the real world don’t apply. You wake up late, you wear a swimsuit all day, and you eat blueberry muffins on the porch.
✨ Don't miss: Who was the voice of Yoda? The real story behind the Jedi Master
Production designer Laurence Bennett and his team did an incredible job making the Fisher house look lived-in. It doesn't look like a sterile movie set. It looks like a place where two families have spent twenty years making memories. Those little details—the height marks on the doorframe, the mismatched mugs—are what make the audience feel like they are part of the family. Honestly, the house is as much of a lead as Lola Tung or Christopher Briney.
The Taylor Swift Effect
We have to talk about the music. If you’re a Swiftie, this show is basically your Disneyland. Jenny Han is a noted fan of Taylor Swift, and the way the show uses her discography is nothing short of surgical.
When "The Way I Loved You (Taylor’s Version)" played during the season one finale? Pure chaos on social media. It wasn't just a background track; it was a narrative tool. The show has featured everything from "Cruel Summer" to "Back to December (Taylor's Version)." This partnership has helped the show reach an audience far beyond the YA demographic. It creates a bridge between the emotional peaks of the plot and the collective memory of the audience who grew up listening to those songs.
But it’s not just Taylor. The soundtrack features Olivia Rodrigo, Phoebe Bridgers, and Tyler, the Creator. The music budget for this show must be astronomical, but it pays off because it captures the vibe of being sixteen and feeling everything ten times harder than you should.
Growing Pains and Real Stakes
Season two took a sharp turn. While the first season was all about the "glow up" and the debutante ball, the second season dealt with the crushing reality of loss. Susannah Fisher’s death changed the DNA of the story.
It stopped being just about who Belly would kiss at the bonfire. It became about how a family survives when its heart is gone. The struggle to save the beach house from being sold by Aunt Julia (played by the talented Kyra Sedgwick) added a layer of urgency that the series needed. It forced Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah to grow up faster than they wanted to.
🔗 Read more: Not the Nine O'Clock News: Why the Satirical Giant Still Matters
Watching them navigate probate court and real estate listings while trying to figure out their feelings was... heavy. But it was real. Most teen shows avoid the boring, painful parts of death, but The Summer I Turned Pretty leaned into it.
The Cast: Finding Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah
Casting can make or break a book adaptation. Lola Tung was a newcomer when she got the role of Belly, and she’s perfect. She has this way of looking both very young and very mature at the same time.
Christopher Briney (Conrad) and Gavin Casalegno (Jeremiah) have the kind of chemistry that makes the triangle believable. You can see why she’d want both. You can also see how much they love each other as brothers, which makes the betrayal of the romance even more painful to watch.
The adults in the show deserve credit too. Jackie Chung (Laurel) and Rachel Blanchard (Susannah) portrayed a female friendship that was, in many ways, more stable and beautiful than any of the romantic ones. Their bond was the foundation of the entire series.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Show
A lot of critics dismiss the show as "just another teen soap." That's a mistake. Underneath the pretty lighting and the beach parties, it’s a very intentional look at the "coming of age" genre through an Asian-American lens.
Belly’s heritage isn't always the central plot point, but it informs her perspective. The show handles her identity with a light touch that feels modern. It’s not a "struggle story" about being biracial; it’s just who she is. This nuance is part of why it resonates so deeply with a diverse Gen Z audience. They see themselves in the casual reality of the Conklin family.
💡 You might also like: New Movies in Theatre: What Most People Get Wrong About This Month's Picks
Looking Ahead to Season 3
If you’ve read the books, you know where this is going. If you haven't, buckle up. The third book, We’ll Always Have Summer, jumps ahead in time. It deals with college, massive life choices, and a wedding that practically divided the internet years before the show even existed.
The production for Season 3 faced some delays due to the strikes in 2023, but filming eventually got underway in North Carolina. Expect the tone to shift again. We’re moving away from the childhood innocence of the earlier seasons and into the "real world" where choices have permanent consequences.
How to Get the Most Out of Your Rewatch
If you're waiting for the next chapter, there's a lot you probably missed the first time around. The show is densly packed with foreshadowing.
- Watch the colors. Notice how Belly wears more blues when she’s closer to Conrad and warmer tones when she’s with Jeremiah. It’s subtle, but it’s there.
- Pay attention to the books Laurel is writing. They often mirror the emotional arc of the season.
- Listen to the lyrics. Jenny Han has gone on record saying that the song choices are never accidental. If a song is playing, the lyrics are likely telling you what a character is too afraid to say out loud.
The Summer I Turned Pretty works because it understands that summer isn't just a season. It’s a mindset. It’s that fleeting window of time where you feel like anything could happen, and the right person might finally look at you the way you've always wanted. Whether you’re Team Conrad, Team Jeremiah, or Team Belly-needs-to-be-single-for-a-while, you can’t deny the show has captured lightning in a bottle.
Actionable Insights for Fans:
- Read the Trilogy: If you haven't read the books by Jenny Han, do it. The show makes significant changes, especially regarding the character of Jeremiah and the inclusion of the debutante ball, which provides a fresh perspective even if you know the ending.
- Visit the Locations: While Cousins Beach is fictional, you can visit Wilmington and Southport, NC. Check out the Crystal Pier or the local boutiques to see the real-life inspiration for the show's aesthetic.
- Explore the Soundtrack: Check out the official "The Summer I Turned Pretty" playlists on Spotify or Apple Music. They are curated to follow the emotional beats of the show and are perfect for catching those Taylor Swift "Easter eggs" you might have missed during the initial viewing.