In today’s world of swipes and likes, fast and casual dating, hookups, and situationships, La La Land presents love in its truest essence. Love isn’t owning someone; it’s about seeing them spread their wings — with you, if you’re lucky, or without you. It’s about the respect that two people share with each other. In some cases, the purest forms of love demand that you choose yourself, instead of making sacrifices.

If you’ve watched the movie, you probably remember the ending explicitly. But did you realize that Damien Chazelle gave away the ending of the movie in its opening song, Another Day of Sun?

In this article, we’ll decode the hidden clue in the opening sequence to La La Land: the song sequence that predicted Seb (Ryan Gosling) and Mia’s (Emma Stone) fate way before their story even began.

Analyzing The Song

Let’s begin with the lyrics–

‘I think about that day

I left him at the Greyhound station, west of Santa Fé

We were 17, but he was sweet, and it was true

Still, I did what I had to do

Cause I just knew”

Ahem! That’s literally Mia from the future, talking through someone else! That’s her and Seb’s story, reimagined! She was 27 and Seb was 28 when they met, but notice how the song cites them as teenagers? And why not? What they had was young love that turned them into kids whenever they were together. Engrossed in each other, it was two kids against the world, until they parted ways.

If you closely follow the lyrics, the song summarizes La La Land from Mia’s perspective.

“Without a nickel to my name

Hopped a bus, here I came

Could be brave or just insane

We’ll just have to see.”

OR,

“Behind these hills, I’m reaching for the heights

And chasing all the lights that shine”

Here, it’s a direct reference to her Hollywood (Hills) dreams.

But there’s one stanza in the song that summarizes the entire ending of La La Land in three lines,

“’Cause maybe in that sleepy town

He’ll sit one day, the lights are down

He’ll see my face and think of how he used to know me.”

The Ending– La La Land

As the three lines in the song go, the ending unfolds in quite the same way. Seb now owns his own jazz club, Seb’s, a name suggested by Mia earlier in the movie, and Mia is a successful film actress.

The scene unfolds with Seb on the piano playing a distinct tune. The club is dimly lit in warm reds, navy blues, and golden yellows. All seats in the audience are full. No other sound but the romantic yet melancholic melody fills the air. Everyone sits transfixed by the music, with all eyes on Seb. Among the crowd sits Mia, watching Seb, as she is slowly losing herself to her own thoughts. Suddenly, we’re pulled into a surreal dream sequence.

The lights in the Jazz club light up. Seb stops playing the piano and gets up from his seat. Mia quickly approaches to greet him, but without another word, he pulls her close, kissing her passionately, as if his life depended on it. Suddenly, the music is back again—it’s an instrumental version of Another Day of Sun! Coincidence?

No lyrics, just an upbeat, more peppy version of the first one, with dreamy interludes, behind a montage, giving us a surreal glimpse of what Mia and Seb’s life could have been together if they had not left each other to pursue their dreams. While Seb eventually gave up on his dreams, ultimately choosing a life away from fame but keeping music as a companion in his life, Mia realizes hers of becoming an actor by the end of the movie.

The nine-minute dream sequence, depicting Mia and Seb’s alternate reality, is a visual representation of the surge of pain in Mia’s heart, as she contemplates what her life could have been if she had given her and Seb’s relationship the chance that it deserved. Sitting there, watching Seb right in front of her, after quite some time, Mia can’t help but ponder if she made the right decision back then by leaving Seb. Yes, she is living her dream at the moment, but will that be enough for her to be happy? Or is that even her real happiness? The montage beautifully encapsulates her fears and longing, amidst all the success in the world.

The montage and the song end with Mia imagining herself kissing Seb, one last time, but as a couple in this alternate reality, who have a family and home together, and a kid together, who Mia’s mother is babysitting back at home, as they are out on a date, at this jazz club. As she opens her eyes, Seb ends his performance. As soon as the melody ends, the entire club erupts into a huge round of applause. Mia gapes at Seb, from a distance, with regret in her eyes.

After the performance, the crowd begins to disperse. Mia begins to scurry away without even greeting Seb, but stops at the door. As she turns back, she catches Seb already looking at her. As their eyes meet, calm and silence take over. A few moments later, Seb breaks into a gentle smile. Mia smiles back at him.

In that moment, they forgive each other for not choosing each other while acknowledging their love—a love that will never die, even though they’re not together.

La La Land is a tribute to those loves that can’t last, but lead to the one that does.. So the next time you break up with someone, watch La La Land to remind yourself to focus on the memories you made, not on the ones you could have!

Personally, I quite loved how the two culminated their love, beautifully, in a nod and a smile. What do you think? Do let us know your version of their alternate reality!