The Kissing Booth 3 filmed in secret, will debut on Netflix in 2021

Just a few days after The Kissing Booth 2 debuted on Netflix, the streaming service announced a third movie in the teen romance franchise is in the works.

And there's more good news for Elle (played by Joey King) and Noah (Jacob Elordi) fans: The Kissing Booth 3 was secretly shot at the same time as the sequel, so filming is already complete. It's currently in post-production and will premiere on Netflix in 2021. The entire cast — including King, Elordi, Joel Courtney, Taylor Zakhar Perez and Molly Ringwald — will return for the follow-up.

"It was the hardest secret to keep," Courtney said during a live YouTube event with the cast on July 26 (US time).

READ MORE: The Kissing Booth 2: Jacob Elordi on the film's success, jumping from Australia to Hollywood and quarantining back home

Despite negative reviews from critics, The Kissing Booth series has been wildly popular among teen audiences at Netflix. After the first film was released in 2018, Netflix reported it was one of its most re-watched original films that year.

The Kissing Booth movies centre on a high school student (King), who falls in love with her best friend's older brother (Elordi). The third entry continues to follow their unlikely relationship and picks up after the events of the second movie — a cliffhanger that leaves King's character grappling with where to attend college.

In her review for Variety, Courtney Howard said the sequel had a "smidge more redeeming value than its predecessor".

READ MORE: Joey King on working with veteran actress Molly Ringwald on the set of The Kissing Booth 2: 'Figure of strength and kindness'

"Though its imaginatively named sequel The Kissing Booth 2 hits similar beats, themes and emotional touchstones, it delivers a few refreshing details by giving the heroine more agency in her quest to find happiness — yet not quite enough to justify its interminable run time," she wrote.

The Kissing Booth films are based on the book series by Beth Reekles. Vince Marcello is back to direct The Kissing Booth 3, which he wrote with Jay Arnold.

Deadline Hollywood first reported the news.