Some questions haunt the collective conscience: Why are printer jams a universal curse? Who keeps renewing Riverdale? And most pressingly, what Taylor Swift era does 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' belong to? It is not '1989,' but it flirts with the vibe. It is not 'Reputation,' but the eyeliner says otherwise. Swifties have debated it like scholars over lost texts. At this point, even Aristotle would need a fan cam.

While her eras are usually labeled like museum exhibits, this one wandered in, broke the glass, posed for photos, and vanished, leaving Swifties clutching glitter and confusion ever since.

'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' by Taylor Swift and Zayn Malik is the orphaned prom queen of her discography, stunning, mysterious, and oddly unattached. It was created for Fifty Shades Darker, a franchise where mood lighting is a plot device and contracts are foreplay. Released in 2016, the single slithered up the charts but never nestled into a studio album. It lives outside Swift’s carefully curated eras, like a designer handbag on loan. Pretty. Powerful. But technically not hers.

Even if 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' never RSVP’d to 'Reputation,' it definitely showed up in full glam. With its electro-dark production and tortured whisper vocals, the song feels like it was born in a snake pit under a blackout moon. Released between the glossy sparkle of '1989' and the vengeance opera of 'Reputation,' it served as the sonic gap year. Made for nights when your mascara runs and your feelings write novels.

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While the song cried in the club, its emotional twin cried on Netflix, less bass drop, more soft lighting, but the same existential crisis in waterproof eyeliner.

If 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' ever needed a spiritual sister, Miss Americana would be the melancholic match. The 2020 Netflix documentary followed Taylor Swift through the smoke and mirrors of 'Reputation' into the pastel reckoning of 'Lover.' Directed by Lana Wilson, it never name-dropped the song, but radiated the same haunted glow. It echoed the same energy as 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever,' fame, fragility, and the silent pressure to have breakdowns pretty enough for a Netflix thumbnail.

Netflix got Miss Americana, but when The Eras Tour came calling, Taylor Swift swerved like a getaway car with no rearview. She partnered with AMC Theatres, turning her concert into a $261 million cinematic power move. Disney+ got the bonus songs in 2024, while Netflix stood outside like an ex at the gates. 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' may lack an official era, but Taylor Swift clearly owns the script and the screen time.

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What are your thoughts on where 'I Don’t Wanna Live Forever' belongs in the Taylor Swift multiverse? Let us know in the comments below.