10 So-Called Happy Endings That Absolutely Aren't

The story of Peter Pan takes on new meanings as you get older. It stops being just an exciting adventure story and becomes something much more sobering as the full tragedy of Peter Pan's situation hits home. He's always going to be alone, unable to move on and get over his fear of growing up.

Well, he does manage to in 1990's Hook, but that's the sole exception. In every other version, the Darling Children are safely returned home to London, but Peter Pan is left back in Neverland. It's arguable that Wendy Darling is the real protagonist of this story, while Pan functions more as a cautionary tale of what happens when you cannot leave childhood behind. It's significant that the original source material is called Peter Pan & Wendy, rather than just Peter Pan. Also, Peter Pan is a massive jerk - that's another interesting thing you notice as you get older. 

The most recent movie adaptation of Peter Pan was 2023's Peter Pan & Wendy, released on Disney+, and while that movie isn't particularly great on the whole, it does at least do more to acknowledge just what a sad figure Pan actually is, and it deserved kudos for that. This was in stark contrast to the 1953 Disney animation which, while a lovely film, didn't do much to explore the darkness of J.M. Barry's original novel and ends on a cheerful note.