Tamal Kundu
The Apple TV+ series ‘Platonic’ revolves around the relationship between Will (Seth Rogen) and Sylvia (Rose Byrne). They were best friends for years until Will married a woman named Audrey (Alisha Wainwright), who and Sylvia didn’t like each other. This led to a falling out between Will and Sylvia. In the present day, Sylvia learns that Will is now divorced and reaches out to him on the encouragement of her husband, Charlie (Luke Macfarlane). After overcoming the initial awkwardness, the old friends reaffirm their friendship, which brings complications to their respective lives. If you are wondering whether Will and Sylvia will end up together in ‘Platonic,’ we got you covered. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Fate of Will and Sylvia’s Bond in Platonic
No, it is highly unlikely for Will and Sylvia to end up together in ‘Platonic.’ The series was created by husband and wife team Nick Stoller and Francesca Delbanco based on a script that the two of them developed with staff writer Judy Choi, story editor Brittany Miller, and writers Guy Endore-Kaiser, Andrew Gurland, Justin Nowell, and Ron Weiner.
In an interview with the New York Times, Delbanco recalled an incident that served as an inspiration for the show. She went to Las Vegas with two straight, married friends and was regularly asked where Stoller was. “It was really fun, and I don’t think Nick [Stoller] was thinking, ‘Why are you in Las Vegas with those friends?’” she recalled. “We just had a great time, but a lot of people were like, ‘Wait, where is your husband?’”
As a show, ‘Platonic’ is a thoughtful exploration of friendship, love, and marriage. Even among friends, Will and Sylvia have a very unusual relationship. In the past, it didn’t bother Charlie much, but the same can’t be said about others. Even though Audrey doesn’t openly admit this, she evidently felt insecure about the relationship between her then-husband and Sylvia. After they reunite, it doesn’t take long for them to fall back into the old pattern.
In the present day, life has taken them in entirely different directions. Sylvia is a quintessential suburban mother living with her picture-perfect family in Culver City, while Will co-owns a chic brewery in downtown Los Angeles where he serves as the brewmaster. Most of his clientele is young, and Will’s life and personal fashion reflect that. But as Sylvia and Will begin to reconnect, it becomes apparent that they both suffer from a similar sense of aimlessness and are experiencing a mid-life crisis.
“I think my character is self-destructive in a lot of ways and immature in a lot of ways, and really trying to live a life that is just not the life someone his age should be living anymore,” Rogen states about Will in an interview with the New York Times. “In his perspective, he’s just not shackled by this thing that she’s shackled by. So her judgment of him is confusing because he’s like: ‘Well, who cares? I don’t have a kid and a spouse.’”
As for Sylvia, she used to be a lawyer but left that life behind to raise her children. Now that they are at an age when they have started seeking independence, she feels lonely and stranded. “It’s a constant push and pull,” Byrne told the same outlet. “You do feel a sense of loss and grief and weird disorientation if you have been the primary caregiver for so long, and that is where she’s at. Then she’s at this crossroad when she reunites with Will, and it sends her off on a little spiral.”
Although outright romance isn’t there in Will and Sylvia’s relationship, there is sexual tension. The two actors previously worked with Stoller on the ‘Neighbors’ films, where they play spouses. That comfortable and engaging chemistry between Rogen and Byrne is very much present in’Platonic,’ irrespective of the fact that they are not playing romantic partners. The show is bound to draw comparisons with the 1989 romantic comedy ‘When Harry Met Sally…,’ where friends eventually become lovers. That transition will likely never happen in ‘Platonic.’ The romantic aspect of Sylvia’s life is reserved for Charlie, even if he feels increasingly insecure about his wife’s relationship with Will.
Read More: Is Platonic Based on a True Story?
