Romantic comedies quickly gained a reputation as the Hollywood film powerhouse genre of the early 2000s. Churning out new movies constantly, again and again finding major success in box offices, and creating stars all at once, it was clear that if you wanted a hit, a “rom-com” had pretty high odds of making it big.
Talking about icons, we can start with movies like Sweet Home Alabama and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. We can also thank them for giving us our heartthrobs, Matthew McConaughey and Patrick Dempsey. Even before that, we got to see Harry meet Sally in, you guessed it, When Harry Met Sally!
Following these, childhood friendship turns into adulthood love with Jenna and Matt. Thank you, 13 Going on 30! UGH, and as “as if!” we could forget our Beverly Hills beauty Cher in Clueless or our Legally Blonde lawyer Miss Elle Woods. Getting into Harvard Law School: “What? Like it’s hard.”
I could go on and on about the dynasty of romantic comedies we’ve seen throughout the movie world, and each may just get more legendary than the next. So why did they fall off? And how did we finally bring them back?
Where did the fall-off come from?
There is one common denominator in all facets of Hollywood, and it’s no secret. Make money. Unfortunately for the future of romantic comedies, many of the high-grossing films fell way outside a rom-com storyline.
Why is this true? Well, for starters, the entire basis of a rom-com movie is to be lighthearted and fun, leaving the audiences with a good taste in their mouths as they exit the theater. But this often did not feel real or relatable, and people began to pick up on that over time. These previously often cheesy storylines may have lacked what people want from the movies: to feel something.
As the happy-ever-after storylines got old, audiences began to lose interest. There was a sudden need for deeper, emotionally stimulating films.
It also didn’t help when big-budget blockbusters in Hollywood like The Avengers began to take over space. People wanted to be shocked, devastated, or completely moved. All in all, they wanted to be blown away.
Sandra Bullock, a well-known actress, found herself pigeonholed into these types of productions. She eventually wanted out and left the genre entirely.
“Anytime someone said ‘chick flick’ or ‘rom-com’, it was just disparaging,” Bullock told the New York Times. “I think when everything swung toward the very masculine action-adventure, women got relegated to the arm piece, or the damsel in distress.
The lack of diversity really drove some of the dislike for these films. We needed more representation for women to stand up and not always fall hopelessly in love. We also needed different casts with more diverse, inclusive storylines.
It became clear that times are changing, and maybe it is fair to say romantic comedies just weren’t changing with it. Until now.
The renaissance of the romantic comedy
It’s just a great escape and a lot of fun, a way to make fun of romance and relationships and the things that can go wrong, and ultimately that’s why people keep turning back to them. They just want to feel good for an hour and a half.
Malin Akerman, Parade.com
Reader, let it be known that romantic comedies are everything we need despite these prior issues. They are coming back and better than ever, with new looks and ideas.
Director Jason Orely told Parade.com, “I think the romantic comedy is one of the most under appreciated and misunderstood genres of film,” he says. “These are desert island movies! Movies that audiences watch over and over because they love how they make them feel.
There was always hope to bring back the genre. People enjoyed feeling happy leaving the theater, it just needed to be done in the right way.
There is a whole new world of laughter and love coming to the screen. With stars like Glen Powell, Sydney Sweeney, Nicholas Galitzine, and various others coming to the big stage, the creation of these funny and love-filled films is once again becoming a huge hit.
“Glen is bringing back rom-coms”
There is way more transparency and openness in the newer approach to romantic comedies. This adds a less cliche type of humor to the scripts. Kirsten Hansen, who wrote the screenplay for Lindsay Lohan’s Irish Wish, says, in her previous scripts, “the notes would be to ‘tone it down,’ but now, wacky comedy is “sort of being encouraged. And I love that.”
Films that are leading the charge
Anyone But You with Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney was a $200 million+ global box office phenom after it hit theaters this past December. A shift in the approach to romantic comedy that helped this film take off was its heavy focus on marketing and selling the movie to audiences before its release. Social media was a huge part of this film’s undeniable success. We really saw Powell and Sweeney’s crazy chemistry on our phones before we even saw it on the screen.
With better marketing and anticipation for these movies, they have much more of a chance to pop off once finally released.
Director Will Gluck uses Hollywood movie budget tendencies to his advantage. “I think I’d rather take a gamble on a mid- to low-budget movie than a $200 million movie,” Gluck said. “Because my whole career has been mid-level budget movies. But to me, the fun part is always outperforming. It is always great when the expectations are low…It’s just it’s really fun to be written off and outperform.”
Rather than easily falling into the low-budget stereotype of romantic comedies, producers are now accepting their means and using it to their advantage. By doing the little things right, and not unrealistically pushing plot lines and scenes, the movies are that much more real to watchers.
Authenticity is also now a true focus in many of these newer films. There is no shortage of stories with different takes on what a great “romance” is. For example, Crazy Rich Asians stars a predominantly Asian cast and offers a glimpse of a more fresh and cultural perspective. Red, White, and Royal Blue, starring up-and-coming stars Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez, is a fun, endearing gay love story that fans loved to see.
The bottom line is, that it’s now clear that as watchers, we love to see real love! In this category of storytelling, we want to see it all! Whatever shape or form these romances take, with this being the baseline of new romantic comedies it is a much smoother path to success.
Here is a list of some other fresh and new films bringing back the beloved genre of romantic comedies:
- Players (Gina Rodriguez, Tom Ellis)
- The Idea of You (Anne Hathaway, Nicholas Galitzine)
- Ticket to Paradise (George Clooney, Julia Roberts)
- Rye Lane (Vivian Oparah, David Jonsson)
- Upgraded (Camila Mendes, Archie Renaux)
- A Family Affair (Zac Efron, Joey King, Nicole Kidman)
- Fall Guy (Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt)
- The Other Zoey (Josephine Langford, Drew Starkey)
- Which Brings Me to You (Lucy Hale, Nat Wolff)
- Lisa Frankenstein (Cole Sprouse, Kathryn Newton)
- Wedding Season (Suraj Sharma, Pallavi Sharda, Rizwan Manji)
There are many different ways romantic comedies have been standing out and shifting their predetermined reputations. And they are here to stay!
Luckily, we can shed tears in both laughter and love again! Thank god.
