It’s been a decade since the last installment of an unfinished sci-fi thriller franchise first hit theaters, but the story is getting a revival this week. On the heels of The Hunger Games‘s success in the late 2000s and early 2010s, many sci-fi dystopian series emerged, hoping to capitalize on the excitement surrounding the genre. One of the most prominent was Divergent, Veronica Roth’s book trilogy, which was also made into a series of films.
The Divergent books were never fully adapted, however, as they tried to follow a trend that even The Hunger Games leaned into. The adaptation of the final novel, Allegiant, was conceptualized as a two-part production, similar to Mockingjay and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Unfortunately, the second Allegiant movie, Ascendant, never got made. After the first proved a box-office flop in 2016, grossing around $172 million on a reported $110 million budget (via The Numbers), the finale fell to the wayside.
Yet Divergent is making a comeback this week with a story that could give the franchise a happier conclusion. That would be The Sixth Faction. The new book has the opportunity to change the conversation around Divergent in more than one way. Its unique setup opens the door to a better send-off for Tris, as well as for the franchise as a whole.
‘The Sixth Faction’ Revives ‘Divergent’ With a Whole New Premise
Veronica Roth is releasing a new Divergent book on October 6, and it totally upends the premise of the original story. The author announced The Sixth Faction back in April, revealing that it would be the first of two books reimagining Tris Prior’s journey. It’s set in an alternate universe, where Tris doesn’t get the opportunity to join Dauntless. Instead, her Choosing Ceremony goes awry, pushing her into a rebellion sooner than the 2010s series does.
It’s an intriguing way to engage Divergent‘s audience again, expanding on a “what if?” scenario that’s typically reserved for fan-fiction. To see an author experiment with how their published story could’ve gone differently is fascinating, and that’s especially true now that Roth is a more experienced writer. The Sixth Faction promises to be one of the biggest book releases of the fall 2026 reason for its intriguing concept alone, but there’s another reason it’s a big deal. It offers hope for a better outcome for the Divergent franchise, as it can fix two problems with its alternate timeline.
Veronica Roth’s New ‘Divergent’ Book Offers Hope of a Better Ending for the Franchise
The Sixth Faction and its February 2027 sequel have a rare opportunity to revive a franchise and end it on a higher note than it last left off. Allegiant‘s movie adaptation left things unfinished back in 2016, a frustrating farewell for any property. But if The Sixth Faction is successful enough, there’s always a chance it could be picked up for a screen adaptation. There are challenges, as it uses the same timeline and characters, something Roth pointed out in an interview with SYFY Wire. However, technically, this opens the door to re-adapt the story and finish it this time around.
In book form, Allegiant also has a famously controversial ending. It doesn’t take Tris down the expected path — and it certainly doesn’t give her and Four the triumphant send-off they so deserved. With The Sixth Faction set to put their characters on totally different courses, readers might get to see what a more optimistic and hopeful fate for Tris looks like. Perhaps that’s just wishful thinking, but The Sixth Faction can address the biggest complaints that plagued the original series’ ending. That’s not something every author gets to do after the fact.
