The Next 365 Days ending explained: Does Laura choose Nacho or Massimo?
The third entry in the erotic thriller series has just arrived on Netflix – here's what happened. **WARNING: Contains spoilers for The Next 365 Days**
The third entry in Netflix’s 365 Days series has landed, bringing Laura and Massimo’s love story to a close (well, sort of).
Based on a novel by Polish author Blanka Lipińska, The Next 365 Days sees Anna-Maria Sieklucka reprise her role as Laura, who begins the film having once again inexplicably survived a near-death experience with no real sign of injury or trauma.
She’s then faced with a new dilemma as she grapples with her unresolved feelings for Nacho (Simone Susinna) whom she met in 365 Days: This Day, but does she pick him over her husband Massimo (Michele Morrone)?
If you've seen the latest instalment and need a recap of how it all turned out, read on to have Netflix's The Next 365 Days ending explained. Be warned: there are spoilers ahead.
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The Next 365 Days ending explained
You may remember that the last film in the 365 Days series ended with Laura being shot, following a complex plot that had been orchestrated against her husband Massimo involving his evil twin brother Adriano.
Adriano, you see, had been posing as Massimo in order to make Laura think her husband had been cheating on her, which in turn led her into the arms of Nacho – a mafioso from a rival family who had been posing as a charming gardener.
Anyway, although Laura somehow doesn't seem to be suffering any major effects from her near-fatal shooting at the beginning of the new film, the events that preceded it have cast something of a shadow over her relationship with Massimo.
Laura is still regularly fantasising about Nacho, even when having sex with her husband, and Massimo is looking very sad about everything – sadly playing tennis, sadly attending Mafia meetings, and in one scene, sadly masturbating in the shower.
They both end up dealing with this rift in different ways. While Laura pours herself into her job as the owner of a luxury fashion label and helps her best pal Olga prepare for her upcoming wedding, Massimo's method of healing seems to be attending lots of orgies.
One day, Olga excitedly tells Laura that they are taking a trip to Portugal, and it's there where things begin to get complicated.
While chilling out on the beach, Laura inevitably spots Nacho, and although she does her best to avoid him they end up running into each other at a club event that night – reintroduced by his sister.
Nacho tells her that even though he had lied to her as part of the plot against Massimo, he really had fallen in love with her, and the two end up having sex.
Of course, around about this point Massimo shows up again in Laura's Portugal rental apartment and insists that he wants to get back together, but she refuses and sends him packing back to Sicily.
Laura is clearly conflicted – does she go for the man who had previously kidnapped her and forced her to fall in love with him, or the man who had posed as someone else in order to use her for a Mafia plot?
Well, unsure how to choose, she decamps back to her parents' home in Poland and enjoys a comparatively relaxing couple of days, but is soon interrupted when Olga calls and informs her that Massimo has found out about her affair with Nacho.
Although Olga's advice is for her to run away and avoid Massimo's wrath, Laura takes a different tack: she needs to be able to confront her husband and will head back to Sicily immediately.
And so she does, but you'd never guess who happens to be riding the taxi that picks her up at the airport? It's Nacho, of course! He tells her that he really has fallen for her and makes his case for why she should choose him.
Eventually, she arrives back home where Olga is nervously waiting, still trying to talk her out of speaking to Massimo. But Laura is not to be dissuaded and finds her husband on the beach, where he cuts a surprisingly calm figure.
He opens up and tells her that their time together as a happy couple had changed his life because he'd finally figured out what he really wanted for himself.
He says he can't forgive himself and reveals that he'd known about Nacho for a long time, but then explains a piece of advice his father had once given him: "If you really love something, just let it go."
He continues: "If it comes back, it's yours forever. If it doesn't, it was never meant to be."
Laura's response? "You're dad was a wonderful father. And you also will be, one day."
The final words we hear are Massimo asking, "Are you back, baby girl?" before the film ends with the pair staring lovingly at each other on the beach.
Does Laura choose Nacho or Massimo?
As detailed above, we don't actually hear a completely definitive answer to Massimo's question.
However, it's very heavily implied that Laura has chosen to stay with her husband instead of running away with Nacho.
The Next 365 Days is available to stream on Netflix. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix, or visit our TV Guide.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.