The Life List ending explained: Who does Alex finally end up with?

Directed by Adam Brooks, The Life List was released on Netflix on March 28, 2025. The movie is based on the book by Lori Nelson Spielman and stars Sofia Carson as Alex Rose.

The story primarily focuses on Alex Rose, a woman whose life has reached a turning point after her mother's death. She has to finish a "life list" that her mother gave her and that she herself made when she was a teenager. One of the twelve goals on the list is to find true love. Alex's journey, on the other hand, leads her to find out family secrets, meet up with old friends, and make new romantic connections.

By the end of The Life List, Alex has finished some of her life goals and found her true love in Brad (played by Kyle Allen). She finally realizes that he is the right person for her.

Netflix’s The Life List's ending is about finding true love

A still from The Life List (Image via Netflix)

In The Life List, Alex's journey starts after her mother dies, when she learns that her mother wanted her to finish a list Alex made when she was a teenager.

The tasks on Alex's life list included a lot of her dreams, like performing stand-up comedy, teaching at a women’s shelter, getting a tattoo, reconciling with her estranged father, and trying new and daring activities like playing basketball. These challenges were designed to help Alex rediscover herself, confront her past, and grow emotionally, ultimately leading her toward self-acceptance and true love.

From the beginning, Alex sees Finn, a man who doesn't share her interests. This makes her think about the choices she's made, which leads her to break up with Finn and start the journey that will change her life.

While Alex is crossing things off her list, she gets closer to Brad, the lawyer for her mother. He helps her with many things, like finding her real father and encouraging her personal growth.

At the end of The Life List, Alex has a heartwarming experience where she learns about herself and grows emotionally. By the end of the movie, Alex's feelings for Brad have grown a lot, and her mother's last words are a big part of how she ends up with him.

Alex finally faces how she feels about Brad after her 'life' journey. She knows that he is the only one who really gets her, accepts her as she is, and brings out the best in her. Brad is happily surprised and overjoyed when Alex tells him she loves him. The movie ends with a romantic moment between Alex and Brad.

Alex and Brad’s growing relationship

A big part of Alex's change is attributed to Brad. Not only does he help her cross things off her list, but he is also there for her when she needs help. Brad listens to Alex, encourages her to follow her dreams, and respects her independence. In Alex's past relationships, her partner was more focused on his own life and expectations.

Although at first, their relationship is just business, as time goes on, it grows into something more. Brad is the perfect partner for Alex because he is kind, helpful, and is not selfish.

Alex meets many people in the movie who help her become a better person. But Brad is the only one who stays by her side, showing that he is the man her mother always hoped she would find.

By the end, Alex had done everything on her list except find true love. At first, she thinks this is a failure, but it's clear that Brad meets the requirements her mother set out in the last letter.

At the end of The Life List, Alex asks Brad a number of important questions based on her mother's four key questions. She thinks these are important things to determine if he is the right person for her. She wants to know if he is nice, if she can always speak her mind with him, and if he helps her become the best version of herself.

She also asks herself if she can see him as a partner for herself and a father in the future. Alex herself finds the answer, remembering the moments she had spent with Brad, and they finally come together.

The Inheritance: Alex receives the letter and the house from her late mother

The inheritance Alex gets from her mother is a powerful representation of how she grows as a person and an emotional being throughout The Life List. After her mother, Elizabeth, dies, Alex finds out that she will not be inheriting the cosmetics company like she thought she would.

Elizabeth left Alex something much more important than money: her house. The house, which stands for the love and memories Alex had with her mother, shows how close they were.

At first, Alex is upset and confused because she thought that checking things off her mother's list would lead to something more real, like money or a business legacy. But as Alex completes the tasks on her list and deals with her feelings, she begins to understand that the house is way more than a sign of wealth. It held all the memories that Alex had of her mother and her past.

In The Life List, the inheritance isn't just about getting a piece of land; it's also a metaphor for Alex's path to healing and self-discovery. It's a reward for how strong and mature she became as she dealt with personal problems, made peace with her father, and fell in love with Brad. As a last gift from her mother, the house shows that Alex has become the person her mother always hoped she would be.

Alex’s journey to reconcile with her father

One of the most significant emotional themes in The Life List is Alex's journey to make peace with her father. At the beginning of the movie, Alex and her father, Samuel, don't get along very well. She has long believed that he left the family, which is why her parents' marriage ended.

To Alex, Elizabeth, her mother, was always there to love and help her, while Samuel was cold and emotionally unavailable. So, Alex holds grudges against her father and their relationship is strained.

But as Alex goes through her mother's life list, she has to face the deeper problems in her family, like her relationship with Samuel. One of her goals is to make peace with her father, something she doesn't want to do at first, finding it very hard to forgive him. She thinks it is not worth it to try to fix a relationship that has already been broken, and does not think he cares about her.

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But when Alex's brother Julian talks about how he feels left out of the close relationship between her and their mother, things start to change. Alex has to rethink what she thinks she knows about her dad and his role in the family after hearing Julian's point of view.

Alex finally talks to Samuel after being pushed to do so by her brothers. During their talk, Alex finds out the painful truth: her mother had been cheating on her father before she was born, but Samuel had taken her in as his own child, never telling Alex the truth. This new information helps Alex understand that her dad had not left her; he was just keeping her safe in his own way.

By the end of the movie, Alex and Samuel share a close relationship, a big step in her emotional growth. Alex can now let go of her anger and build a deeper relationship with her father, and move ahead on her path to healing and self-discovery.

Alex finds the ‘right’ person

Along Alex's journey, it becomes clear that the list was never about just crossing things off it. The list is actually a road map for getting to know yourself and growing emotionally.

Crossing things off the list isn't the only thing that matters; learning how to love and accept life in an honest way is also important. Alex learns what she really wants from life and love as she goes through hard times and makes it through them.

Alex and Brad go from being friends to falling in love. At some point, she realizes that love shouldn't be rushed or forced. It grows naturally when people respect each other, trust each other, and work together to grow. Brad gives Alex support that none of her former partners could, helping her get through tough times while being emotionally available.

The Life List is available to stream on Netflix.

Edited by Meghna