What in Taylor Swift’s ‘Wildest Dreams’? Full Song Analysis

Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version) is a gorgeous ride through a romantic tryst. The central love story is forbidden and bad for both of them, but they take the drive through romance together anyway.

What’s going on in these lyrics, and what can we learn about Taylor’s idea of romance and permanence?

Here’s my complete analysis of Taylor’s Wildest Dreams meaning, line by line.

Cover image for the song analysis of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' featuring the title in large, pale blue letters against a cloudy sky background. The phrase 'Taylor's version' is styled in cursive, indicating the specific version of the song. The logo 'Swiftly Sung Stories' is placed subtly at the bottom.

Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version)

  • Title: Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version)
  • Written by: Taylor Swift, Max Martin, Shellback 
  • Track: 9, 1989 (Taylor’s Version)
  • Pen: Fountain 
  • Lyrics from Genius

Wildest Dreams Meaning: Narrative Synopsis

  • Setting: In Taylor’s wildest dreams & fantasies. 
  • Characters: Narrator (Taylor), subject (her crush) 
  • Mood: Naughty, secretive. 
  • Conflict: They won’t last, or they can’t be together. 
  • Inciting Incident: Escaping the city.  
  • Quest: Hope he remembers her, even if it doesn’t last. 
  • Symbols & Metaphors: dreams/fantasies, bad vs. good, angels vs. devils, endings vs. beginnings, the color red, dress, fire. 
  • Theme: Hot and steamy daydream. 
  • Imagery: “so tall and handsome as hell,” “standin’ in a nice dress starin’ at the sunset,” “red lips and rosy cheeks,” “His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room,” “Tangled up with you all night / Burnin’ it down.” 
  • Lesson: It might not last, but you can dream about the road to ruin. 

Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version) Lyric Video

Who is Wildest Dreams About? 

It’s theorized to be about Alexander Skarsgård, whom Taylor met around the time of writing the song.

Taylor has never revealed whom she had in mind – if anyone – while writing the tune. 

What is Wildest Dreams About? 

Wildest Dreams is a fantasy about a tryst with a ‘bad boy.’ Taylor dreams about a man she knows will be bad for her, but fantasizes about hooking up with him anyway. 

But moreover, it symbolizes Taylor’s changing outlook on love.

She told reporters at the time of the release that she leans toward pessimistic when starting something new, and this song symbolizes that feeling.

“When I meet someone and we have a connection, the first thought I really have is, “When this is over, I hope you think well of me.” So, this song is about having that immediate connection with someone, and these were my vivid thoughts right as I met him,” she said.

Wildest Dreams Lyrics Analysis: Line by Line 

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'. 
the first verse reads: "He said, "Let's get out of this town

Drive out of the city, away from the crowds"

I thought, "Heaven can't help me now"

Nothing lasts forever

But this is gonna take me down"

The first verse begins in medias res: in the middle of the action. Taylor is getting propositioned. “Let’s get out of this town,” her crush asks. They should “drive out of the city, away from the crowds.” 

This implies a kind of secret tryst; a weekend away from the prying eyes of the city. 

“I thought, ‘Heaven can’t help me now’,” Taylor reveals. The common phrase is “heaven help me,” when you need assistance getting through a tough time. But even god can’t help her with this man – he’s too tempting. 

“Nothing lasts forever,” she shrugs, “but this is gonna take me down.” It won’t last, and she knows it from the start. And she’ll get ruined (‘taken down’) if she walks this path.

But she wants to take this road down to ruin, despite her conscience telling her not to. 

Pre-Chorus & Chorus: “He’s So Tall And Handsome As Hell”

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'. 
The first chorus reads: "He's so tall and handsome as hell
He's so bad, but he does it so well
I can see the end as it begins
My one condition is

[Chorus]
Say you'll remember me
Standin' in a nice dress
Starin' at the sunset, babe
Red lips and rosy cheeks
Say you'll see me again
Even if it's just in your
Wildest dreams, ah, ha
Wildest dreams, ah, ha"

The pre-chorus reveals why she’s crushing on him: “he’s so tall and handsome as hell.”

This lyric is what Swifties point to as an Alexander Skarsgård reference, concluding that their encounter on the set of The Giver must have spurred this longing. 

“Handsome as hell” implies he’s some kind of devil, and paired with “heaven can’t help me” shows that Taylor is making some good vs. evil and angel vs. devil motifs in the lyrics. 

“He’s so bad, but he does it so well” paints him as the stereotypical ‘bad boy,” like a “handsome devil”, maybe? 

“I can see the end as it begins,” she says. She knows this will end badly, but she wants to take the drive anyway. This is very similar to Blank Space, where she says “I’m dyin’ to see how this one ends.” 

“I can make the bad guys good for a weekend” also connects these two songs together thematically. 

Before they embark on this tryst, she has one request: “say you’ll remember me, standin’ in a nice dress, starin’ at the sunset, babe.” This imagery paints a portrait of her in his mind; something positive and beautiful he can think of, even after they go down in flames. 

“Staring at the sunset” reflects how it will end, and she wants his memory of her to be not of the dying flames, but of a sunset. A beautiful and peaceful end, unlike what’s really to come. 

“Red lips and rosy cheeks” pull in the color red, which Taylor often uses to symbolize the flush of love. But she also uses a red lip to convey a type of scarlet ‘A’ – is both naughty and sarcastic nod to her reputation as a ‘maneater.” 

“Say you’ll see me again,” she asks, “even if it’s just in your wildest dreams.” She knows that after this goes down, they’ll likely never see one another physically again. So she paints him a portrait to hang in his dreams. 

🩵🩵 Can you pass the 1989 TV Lyrics Quiz? 🩵🩵

Verse 2: “No One Has to Know What We Do”

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'

The second verse reads: "I said, "No one has to know what wе do"

His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room

And his voicе is a familiar sound

Nothin' lasts forever

But this is gettin' good now"

Verse two is in the midst of the secret tryst. “No one has to know what we do,” she says. They can keep this just between them. 

“His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room” paints an intimate portrait of them together in bed. 

“His voice is a familiar sound / nothin’ lasts forever” means his voice might not always be familiar. 

This is a bit of a prequel to “please don’t ever become a stranger whose laugh I would recognize anywhere.” She won’t write this line until later on Reputation for New Year’s Day, but the two lyrics are eerily similar. 

The echoes of an ex’s voice haunt her in both songs. 

“But this is gettin’ good now” could mean that the plot is getting exciting, or it could be satire, where “getting good” is really “going down in flames.” Alternatively, it could be that the sex is getting good. 

2nd Pre-Chorus & Chorus: “When We’ve Had Our Very Last Kiss”

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'

The pre-chorus and chorus reads: "He's so tall and handsome as hell

He's so bad, but he does it so well

And when we've had our very last kiss

My last request it is

[Chorus]

Say you'll remember me

Standin' in a nice dress

Starin' at the sunset, babe

Red lips and rosy cheeks

Say you'll see me again

Even if it's just in your

Wildest dreams, ah, ha (Ha, ha)

Wildest dreams, ah, ha"

The second chorus changes “I can see the end as it begins” to “and when we’ve had our very last kiss.” This evokes a kind of death row metaphor. 

Before she metaphorically dies – or their relationship dies – she has a “last request.” It’s like she’s a prisoner asking for her last meal. And what does she want to “eat”? 

His memory of her. What she wants the most is to be remembered; not to be forgotten as a one-night-stand or sidepiece. She wants a piece of real estate in his mind, forever. 

Bridge: “You’ll See Me in Hindsight”

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'

The bridge reads: "[Bridge]

You'll see me in hindsight

Tangled up with you all night

Burnin' it down

Someday, when you leave me

I bet these memories

Follow you around

You'll see me in hindsight

Tangled up with you all night

Burnin' (Burnin') it (It) down (Down)

Someday, when you leave me

I bet these memories

Follow (Follow) you (You) around (Around)

(Follow you around)"

The bridge opens with a common theme on the 1989 album: hindsight. 

“You’ll see me in hindsight / tangled up with you all night” means she wants him to look back on this one hot weekend and remember it fondly. 

“Burnin’ it down” could describe the sex itself, but it could also symbolize their relationship turning to ashes. This reminds me of “if I get burned at least we were electrified” from her future Reputation song Dress

Fire and burning down are a consistent metaphor in the Taylorverse, and in this case, it seems like what they have is so hot that it’ll burst into flames. 

Last Chorus & Outro: “Even if It’s Just Pretend”

A lyrical interpretation of Taylor Swift's 'Wildest Dreams' with a sky in the background. The image is part of the 'Swiftly Sung Stories' series and includes the attribution 'Taylor Swift, "Wildest Dreams" (Taylor's Version)'. 
The final chorus and outro read: "[Chorus]

Say you'll remember me

Standing in a nice dress

Starin' at the sunset, babe

Red lips and rosy cheeks

Say you'll see me again

Even if it's just pretend

Say you'll remember me

Standin' in a nice dress

Starin' at the sunset, babe

Red lips and rosy cheeks

Say you'll see me again

Even if it's just in your (Just pretend, just pretend)

Wildest dreams, ah, ha (Ah-ah)

Wildest dreams, ah, ha

Even if it's just in your

In your wildest dreams, ah, ha

In your wildest dreams, ah, ha"

The final chorus & outro repeat everything from before, but it adds a new key word: “pretend.” 

“Say you’ll see me again / even if it’s just pretend.” Does this mean that he’ll pretend to see her, like in his dreams?

Or does it mean that this whole thing – the entire song and relationship – was pretend? 

She repeats this two more times: “just pretend, just pretend”. I think this is Taylor telling us that the whole fling is a figment of her imagination; something she wished could have happened. 

It’s one very steamy fantasy! 

Wildest Dreams Lyrics Meaning: Final Thoughts 

Whether these events actually happened or not only matters to Taylor. But what Wildest Dreams does very well is toe the line between fantasy and reality. 

She’s always been very good at creating an entire universe in the space of a song, and in this track, it’s a hot, sultry, sexy landscape. 

It also plays with the idea of good and evil so beautifully: why we always want the things that are bad for us. We know it will end, but it’s a thrilling ride.

🩵🩵 Can you pass the 1989 TV Lyrics Quiz? 🩵🩵

More Songs From 1989 (Taylor’s Version) 

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