What Chronic Illness Does Oriah Have in ‘The Last Sunrise’ Explained

‘The Last Sunrise’ is drawing attention as one of the more anticipated coming-of-age romances heading toward audiences, and much of that curiosity centers on its heroine’s health struggles. Adapted from Anna Todd’s novel of the same name, the story follows a young woman whose life has been shaped by illness long before she ever sets foot on a Mediterranean island.

The film is directed by Carlson Young for Amazon MGM Studios, with a cast led by Maia Reficco, Fernando Lindez and Eva Longoria. As readers and now moviegoers dig into the source material, the specific nature of the protagonist’s condition has become one of the most searched details tied to the project.

Oriah Pera’s Chronic Illness Explained

In the novel, twenty-two-year-old Oriah Pera, known as Ry, is caught between chronic health issues and an overprotective mother, feeling stuck waiting for her life to begin. According to a detailed reader review of the book, Ry has tuberous sclerosis, a condition that causes seizures and other symptoms. The same review notes that the only possible cure available to her is a dangerous operation, one that a close friend of hers previously underwent.

That friend’s experience looms large over Ry’s decisions throughout the story. The operation resulted in her friend losing all memory and existing in a state of limbo, which understandably makes Ry hesitant to pursue the same path for herself. This backstory gives weight to why she has spent years sheltered rather than pursuing treatment, and why her mother’s protectiveness, while suffocating, comes from a place of real fear.

In broader terms, the official description of the film characterizes her simply as a young American woman with health problems who follows her overprotective mother when her job takes them to Majorca. The condition itself is rarely named outright in marketing materials, which is likely why so many readers have turned to the book to understand exactly what Ry is dealing with before the film reaches screens.

Tuberous sclerosis is a rare genetic disorder that can cause noncancerous tumors to grow in various organs, along with neurological symptoms including seizures, and there is no cure, only management of symptoms. That real world context helps explain why the story treats Ry’s condition as something that has quietly defined her entire life rather than a plot device introduced for a single dramatic beat.

‘The Last Sunrise’ Movie Plot and Setting

The film has been described as a coming of age story in which the young woman finds love with a charismatic local Spaniard after her mother’s job relocates them to Majorca. Another synopsis frames it as a summer where she must weigh her heart’s desires against family obligations and her planned return home.

That central romance is built around the character Julian, and the dynamic between Ry’s sheltered upbringing and his free spirited nature is central to the coming of age arc. In the source novel, that dynamic is described through Ry’s own act of rebellion. She heads to the beach alone and meets an infuriatingly charming Spaniard who makes her feel even more naive and inexperienced than she normally does, yet she cannot tamp down her growing attraction.

The Majorca setting is not incidental to the story either. It functions as the space where Ry begins to separate her own desires from the life her mother has built around managing her illness, and the tension between safety and self discovery runs through the entire narrative according to descriptions of the source material.

‘The Last Sunrise’ Cast and Production Details

The cast is led by Maia Reficco as Oriah Pera, with Fernando Lindez as Julian García, Eva Longoria as Isolde Pera, Andrés Velencoso as Mateo García, Chloé Sweetlove as Amara and Sabrina Bartlett as Prisha. Longoria plays Ry’s mother, Isolde, placing her at the center of the film’s central family tension.

Behind the camera, the film comes from Amazon MGM Studios and is directed by Carlson Young from a script by Anna Klassen, adapted from Todd’s novel. Young previously directed ‘The Blazing World’ and the romantic comedy ‘Upgraded,’ and most recently helmed the 2025 thriller ‘Trust’ starring Sophie Turner, giving her a growing track record in character driven genre work ahead of this adaptation.

Todd serves as a producer alongside Jennifer Gibgot and Andrew Panay of Ethea Entertainment, Lena Roklin of Luber Roklin Entertainment, and Brian Pitt of Pitt Street Productions. This marks another entry in Todd’s growing filmography as a producer, following her work on the After film series and its sequel, as well as her producer credit on ‘Regretting You’ for Paramount Pictures.

Anna Todd’s Novel and Its Path to the Screen

Todd built her career after starting to write stories on her phone through Wattpad, with her After series becoming the platform’s most read series with over two billion reads. She has since served as a producer and screenwriter on the film adaptations of ‘After’ and ‘After We Collided,’ in addition to her work on ‘The Last Sunrise.’

Reader reception to the novel itself has been mixed according to early reviews. One reviewer described the book as boring and said they had high expectations because of Todd’s other work, specifically the After series, but felt this particular story fell flat for them. Other readers responded more warmly. A different review called the book heartfelt and emotional, awarding it four to four and a half stars and noting they planned to check out more of the author’s work after finishing it.

That split reaction may end up mirroring how audiences respond to the film once it arrives, particularly given how central Ry’s illness and her friend’s cautionary experience with surgery are to the emotional stakes of the story.

Given how much weight tuberous sclerosis carries in shaping Ry’s choices throughout ‘The Last Sunrise,’ it will be worth watching how faithfully the film translates that diagnosis and its consequences to the screen, and readers who have already made their way through Anna Todd’s novel may have plenty to say about whether the adaptation gets her journey right.