Netflix's The Heart Knows ending explained: Why does Juan go to El Progreso?

With the release of The Heart Knows on May 30, 2025, Netflix has added yet another romantic drama to its vast collection. Starring Benjamín Vicuña as Juan and Julieta Díaz as Valeria, the one-hour, 29-minute film explores how its central characters cross paths under unusual circumstances.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the movie The Heart Knows. Reader discretion is advised.

Juan, the CEO of Concretar, a construction company, is business-oriented and self-absorbed. However, his loyalty towards his work is put to the test when he suffers a heart attack and is told that his heart needs to be replaced. Fortunately, he finds a donor in Pedro, a man living in El Progreso who was recently announced brain dead following a fatal road accident.

After the transplant, Juan's character experiences a major shift as he no longer prioritizes the things he used to before. What's more, he is also keen on learning more about Pedro and the life he lives in El Progreso. For the same reason, he changes his appearance to suit the city's neighborhood and starts frequenting it.

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Juan goes to El Progreso to learn more about Pedro, his heart donor in The Heart Knows

Juan goes on a journey of exploration to El Progreso in The Heart Knows (Image via Netflix)

As mentioned previously, after Juan undergoes the heart replacement surgery in Netflix's The Heart Knows, his behavior substantially changes. He is more attuned with his emotions than before, and work, which used to be his priority, gets reduced to a form of hindrance in his daily life.

Driven by his compassion and newfound appreciation of life, Juan decides to learn more about Pedro, the man who donated his heart to him when he needed a transplant. He travels to El Progresso, a small city, where Pedro used to live with his wife, Valeria, and his son, Tiago, before his demise.

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Juan and Valeria form a romantic connection in The Heart Knows

Juan and Valeria link up in The Heart Knows (Image via Netflix)

In a pure textbook romance way, Juan, who now has Pedro's transplanted heart, develops a connection with Valeria, his widow. The bond is mutual, as Valeria also takes a liking to Juan. Their relationship blossoms, with the two even sharing a kiss during an event.

However, their relationship faces a roadblock when Valeria learns part of Juan's identity. This incident compels Juan to reveal everything about himself, including the fact that he was the recipient of Pedro's heart following his accident.

In addition to this, Valeria discovers that Concretar, the company where Juan was CEO, was planning to relocate the residents of the El Progresso neighborhood. This was being done alongside efforts to renovate the area through the company. Valeria and the city residents were strongly opposed to these decisions.

That being said, when El Progresso residents tried to orchestrate a movement to stop the relocations of the city's inhabitants, they learn that Concretar had no such plans. This ends up creating a good impression in Valeria's mind, and she reconciles with Juan.

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The El Progresso residents are rewarded with infrastructural developments in their city in The Heart Knows

The El Progresso residents aren't too happy with Concretar's efforts at bringing change to their neighborhood (Image via Netflix)

After Valeria and the El Progresso residents learn that they will not be evicted by Concretar, Juan ensures that the city will experience positive changes as part of a development initiative. These changes will not disrupt their peaceful existence in the region in any way.

One of the changes Juan proposes is the renovation of old buildings in the city, which will make the lives of those living there much easier. Another one of his propositions is to foster the development of new structures, helping the residents.

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The Heart Knows is currently streaming on Netflix.