cliffhanger
n.n. a story or show that ends in a way that makes you want to watch the next part. It usually leaves a big question or a dangerous situation at the end.
n. a narrative device or episode ending that leaves a significant plot point unresolved, typically to encourage the audience to continue watching or reading.
The movie ends on a classic cliffhanger.
The author used a cliffhanger at the end of the first book to ensure readers would buy the sequel.
While some critics argue that the cliffhanger is a lazy way to maintain viewership, others see it as a masterful technique for building suspense and emotional investment.
From cliff + hanger, evoking the image of someone left hanging from a cliff, thereby having an uncertain fate. The term "cliffhanger" is considered to have originated with the serialised version of Thomas Hardy's "A Pair of Blue Eyes", published in Tinsley's Magazine in the 1870s, in which the character Henry Knight is left hanging off of a cliff. It was inspired by a real life story from his wife Emma's childhood, when she had to rescue one of her school friends from a similar position.