If you just watched Voicemails for Isabelle
The film is fiction. What happens to the phone number is real.
In the film, a woman keeps leaving voicemails for her late sister, and the number has quietly gone to a stranger. In real life, when a phone account is closed, the greeting a person recorded is erased and the number is later given to someone new. Bourdon keeps both, the greeting and the number, for ten years.
Best done in the first 30 days, before the phone account is closed.
About the film
Voicemails for Isabelle, in brief
Voicemails for Isabelle is a romantic comedy written and directed by Leah McKendrick, released on Netflix on June 19, 2026. Jill, an aspiring pastry chef in San Francisco, copes with the death of her sister, Isabelle, by continuing to leave her voicemails. Isabelle's old number has been reassigned to Wes, an Austin real estate agent, who starts hearing Jill's messages and falls for her one voicemail at a time.
Is it a true story?
No. The plot is fiction. McKendrick has said the film grew out of her love for her own younger sister, who is alive, and the long voicemails she used to leave her late at night after moving to Los Angeles.
The real story behind the story
What actually happens to a loved one's number and greeting
The greeting is erased
A voicemail greeting is not stored on the phone. It lives on the carrier's voicemail system and lasts only as long as the account. The day the account is canceled, the greeting is gone, and there is nothing left to recover.
The number goes to someone new
After a holding period, the carrier gives the number to a new customer. From then on, anyone who dials it, an old friend, a cousin, a sister, reaches a stranger. That is the turn the film is built on, and it happens to real families.
No carrier publishes a firm deadline. Phone accounts are often closed within weeks of a death, which is why we suggest acting in the first 30 days, before the account is closed.
How Bourdon keeps both
Their greeting saved. Their number kept. No AI.
- 01
Check the number
Tell us the number. We look up whether the line is still active and can be kept. There is no payment to check.
- 02
We save the greeting
We call once and record the greeting exactly as a caller hears it, then email you the master files: an MP3, an archival WAV and a transcript.
- 03
We keep the line
With signed authorization from the executor, the estate administrator or the surviving account holder, we move the number into our custody. For ten years, callers hear the greeting and can leave a message, saved in a private family archive.
The greeting plays. Nobody answers and nothing is generated. We do not clone voices or create speech, and our terms forbid it. The Memorial Line is $399 once for ten years, or $49 for the greeting and the files alone. See pricing.
Thinking of your own number
Some people watch the film and think of the people who would call them.
You can arrange your own line while you are living. You record the greeting yourself, keep the files, and name the one person who takes over the line later. Nothing more is charged until then, and you can change your mind at any time.
Plan ahead for your own numberQuestions
What people ask after the film
Is Voicemails for Isabelle a true story?
No. The plot is fiction. Writer and director Leah McKendrick has said the film grew out of her love for her own younger sister, who is alive, and the long voicemails she used to leave her late at night.
Can a dead person's phone number really go to a stranger?
Yes. When a phone account is closed, the carrier takes the number back and, after a holding period, gives it to a new customer. That is the part of the film that matches real life.
What happens to the voicemail greeting when someone dies?
It stays only as long as the phone account stays open. The greeting lives on the carrier's voicemail system, not on the phone, so it is erased when the account is canceled.
How do I save a loved one's voicemail greeting after they die?
Before the account is closed, have someone call the number and record the greeting. Bourdon does this for you: we call once, capture the greeting, and send you the master files as an MP3, an archival WAV and a transcript.
Can I keep a loved one's phone number after they die?
It is often possible while the account is still open. With authority from the executor, the estate administrator or the surviving account holder, Bourdon moves the number into our custody and keeps it connected, playing their greeting, for ten years.
Is Bourdon connected to Netflix or the film?
No. Bourdon is an independent company. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Netflix, the filmmakers or anyone in the cast.
Bourdon is an independent company. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Netflix, the filmmakers or the cast of Voicemails for Isabelle. The film's title and credits are mentioned only to describe it.
If the phone is still on, there is still time.
Start with the number. Everything else waits until you are ready.
Check their number