When Netflix released the final installment of its hit teen romance franchise, fans noticed something familiar yet peculiar about the main character. Joey King sported her signature long locks for almost the entirety of the film, but the truth behind those strands was hiding in plain sight. Joey King's short hair in The Kissing Booth 3 wasn't a styling choice for the character's main timeline; it was the result of a previous acting commitment that forced the production to rely heavily on hairpieces.
If you wondered why Elle Evans looked slightly different or why her hair texture shifted during certain sequences, the answer goes back to a dramatic physical transformation King underwent for an entirely different television project. Production timelines, back-to-back filming schedules, and practical makeup choices collided, creating a fascinating behind-the-scenes puzzle for the film crew.
The Gypsy Rose Blanchard Transformation
To understand why a wig was necessary for the second and third installments of the franchise, you have to look at what King did right before returning to the role of Elle Evans. In late 2018 and early 2019, King starred in the Hulu true-crime miniseries The Act, playing Gypsy Rose Blanchard. The role required total dedication to physical realism, which meant King shaved her head completely.
Shaving your head for a heavy dramatic role is a bold move for any young actor. For King, it meant parting with her hair for the third time in her career. Because hair doesn't grow back overnight, she was left with a very short buzz cut just as pre-production on the Netflix sequels was ramping up.
Back-to-Back Filming in South Africa
Netflix made the strategic decision to film The Kissing Booth 2 and The Kissing Booth 3 back-to-back in South Africa during the summer and fall of 2019. This compressed shooting schedule was efficient for the studio and the cast, but it created a massive continuity nightmare for the hair and makeup department.
Elle Evans is known for her long, wavy brown hair throughout the core narrative of the franchise. Because King's real hair was still growing out from a buzz cut during the entirety of the South African shoot, continuity demanded a solution. The production team invested in high-end, custom-made wigs designed to match the exact look of King's hair from the original 2018 movie.
If you watch closely, King wore that wig for almost the entirety of the second and third films. The styling team worked overtime to ensure lighting, blending, and physical movement masked the fact that a hairpiece was on screen.
The Exception: The Real Hair Flash-Forward Scene
Not every strand on screen was artificial, though. Sharp-eyed viewers noticed a stark difference during the movie's concluding flash-forward sequence. At the end of The Kissing Booth 3, the narrative jumps forward six years into the future.
In this final segment, Elle Evans sports a chic, authentic pixie cut. That short haircut was entirely real. By the time the production wrapped or shot pickup sequences, King's natural hair had grown out into a short style, allowing the crew to ditch the wig for the flash-forward scenes. It marked a rare moment where fiction and reality aligned, letting King display her actual grown-out pixie cut on camera.
How Hollywood Handles Hair Continuity
Managing hair continuity across film and television projects is one of the most underrated challenges in production. When actors alter their appearance for independent projects, stage plays, or prestige television, film franchises must adapt quickly.
- Lace-front wigs: Modern synthetic and human-hair lace fronts allow actors to maintain different looks across multiple simultaneous sets.
- Digital retouching: In rare cases, minor stray hairs or hairline inconsistencies are cleaned up in post-production.
- Strategic scheduling: Directors often push scenes requiring natural hair to the end of a shooting block to give the actor's hair maximum time to grow.
For more insights into how major streaming productions manage behind-the-scenes logistics, you can explore updates on Netflix or read industry breakdowns on Variety.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Joey King wear a wig in all three Kissing Booth movies?
No. She wore her natural hair in the first movie released in 2018. She wore a wig for almost the entirety of the second and third movies because they were filmed back-to-back while her hair was still growing out from a buzz cut.
Why did Joey King shave her head originally?
She shaved her head to play Gypsy Rose Blanchard in the critically acclaimed Hulu true-crime anthology series The Act.
Is the short hair at the end of The Kissing Booth 3 real?
Yes. The pixie cut seen on Elle Evans during the final flash-forward sequence of the third movie was Joey King's actual real hair at that stage of her growth process.
How long did it take for Joey King's hair to grow back?
Hair grows on average about half an inch per month. Going from a complete buzz cut to a styled medium length required months of patience, vitamin supplementation, and temporary styling fixes like extensions and wigs.
