We can’t say we’re surprised, really. We all saw the writings on the wall. Kathryn and Alden have been hanging out. Direk Cathy and writer Carmi Raymundo had IG stories of them in Canada. Those art cards GMA Pictures and Star Cinema had been posting about this iconic joint production weren’t being subtle either. But now, it’s official. In a live-streamed conference yesterday, May 19, they finally announced the follow-up to 2019’s Hello, Love Goodbye: Hello, Love, Again. 

And as a huge fan of the first film (I saw it in the cinema four times!), of course I have thoughts. Here’s a list of everything we know and everything I hope for Joy and Ethan’s Part Two!

Playdates are a writer’s worst enemy

Am I thrilled about this sequel? Hell yes. I think no couple since Before Sunrise has deserved a sequel like Joy and Ethan. But I’ll be completely honest: I instantly hated that they already have a playdate. Hello, Love, Again is set to come out on November 13 this year. That’s in six months! They don’t even have a script yet! Oh, Star Cinema. 

The first film, to me, joins the ranks of One More Chance and A Very Special Love in the list of perfect Direk Cathy Garcia-Sampana films, and a sequel worthy of these well-loved characters needs time. I’m not saying it will be bad, okay? I’m saying it has a higher risk of becoming underwhelming because of this tight schedule. I hope writers Carmi Raymundo and Crystal San Miguel turn it out despite this difficult timeline that GMA Pictures and Star Cinema imposed. 

The Hong Kong Protests

During the live stream, Direk Cathy expressed her gratitude to the Filipinos in Hong Kong, and said that this sequel, however, will focus on the stories of OFWs in Canada. Completely fair, of course. But I wonder if the supporting characters will get a shoutout in Hello, Love, Again, considering that shortly after the first film wrapped filming, after Joy’s character left, the Hong Kong protests began. 

How did these now-historic protests affect Ethan and Joy’s friends? I hope they make a reference to it, at the very least.

Miss Rona’s impact

And there is, of course, COVID. As Raymundo put it perfectly in the conference: “They are global Filipinos and a global event happened. Imposibleng walang naging impact sa kanila ‘yon.” Especially because Joy left Hong Kong to be a nurse in Canada! 

How did her work as a frontliner change her? How did the pandemic impact her and Ethan’s families? Something tells me that the sequel’s Joy will somehow be more hardened and Ethan will be more broken. And as much as it’d be sad, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone close to them had died in the last five years, especially at the height of the pandemic.

Angst, please!

Yes, the rom-com parts of HLG were delightful, but I think that it’s in darker, more serious moments that it truly shined. Especially its leads! So yeah, I do want this to be more painful than the first. I want mutual pining! I want tearful kisses! I want a confrontation scene to match the first one without trying so hard to match it.

No more hugot lines

Please, I hope they do not feel the need to reference the iconic lines from the first movie by repurposing them or making a spin on them somehow for this sequel. They did this in A Second Chance and I fear they’d do it again for this.

Star Cinema has a terrible habit of adding a quotable quote for the sake of having a quotable quote they can add to the trailer, and they often feel gimmicky or unearned. Please, I don’t want that for Ethan and Joy. A killer line is a killer line when it feels earned and true to the character, not because of smart wordplay.

Before Sunset and Sana Maulit Muli

I wouldn’t be surprised if we get parallels here and there with Before Sunset and the Aga-Lea starrer, Sana Maulit Muli. The set-up is giving very much a mix of those! 

I think that if Joy and Ethan did try long-distance, they would’ve eventually broken up. I expect to see Joy quite successful as a nurse, but has once again lost the joy that Ethan brought out of her in the first film. Thankfully, Ethan is in Canada to do just that once again. 

But what brought him there? I hope he’s not there just to get Joy back, though, because that would kind of undo the growth he had in the HLG.

Niagara Falls

I have a feeling the iconic Niagara Falls will be to Hello, Love, Again as Victoria Peak was to Hello, Love, Goodbye and I’m excited to see it! 

The landmark has been a staple in various works of art and literature, and it would be a shame if HLA didn’t get to partake in that. Perhaps their first meeting happens there? Or maybe Joy will take Ethan there at a key moment in the film? Beats me. As long as I see a gorgeously shot Kath and Alden in Niagara, period.

KathDen will eat

This is not a wish, but a certainty. Kathryn and Alden will deliver great performances on this one.

Firstly, to say that Kathryn has more emotional depth to draw from now is kind of an understatement. And after her Urian and FAMAS-nominated performance in A Very Good Girl, I’m just so sure she’ll come on set with brand new ammo in her arsenal. Meanwhile, Alden just went head-to-head with Sharon Cuneta and Julia Montes the past year and received a FAMAS nod for the former. Paired all that growth with Direk Cathy’s reputation as an actor’s director, these leads may just give career-best performances on this film if the material is right!

Hello, Love, Again will be showing in cinemas on November 13, 2024.

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