Welcome to modern rom-com week at The Daily Beast’s Obsessed! In honor of two big romance releases this week—The Fall Guy and The Idea of You—we’re celebrating everything we love about the last 15 years of romantic comedies.
It’s time to quit saying the studio romantic comedy is dead. Sure, rom-coms may not make hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office like they once did. But, realistically Hollywood will never kill the rom-com—it’ll always rise again.
In just the past 15 years alone, the studio rom-com has evolved multiple times, from the work of relatable everyman Judd Apatow to the incessant glut of Adam Sandler flicks and Sydney Sweeney’s instant surprise success, to name a few iterations. It will continue to evolve and grow to suit new audiences, like any genre—and this year, it has been reborn again with the release of Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt’s action-rom-com The Fall Guy.
With the release of a huge, game-changing romantic comedy coming up, let’s take a look at the state of modern studio rom-coms. What’s the best love story of our current generation? From the very high highs to some super-low lows, we ranked all 34 studio rom-coms that have come out in the past 15 years (or so).
There are several factors guiding the creation and ranking of this list. We’re defining the “modern” era as from 2010 to present. These movies had to be distributed by one of the major Hollywood studios—Disney, Warner Bros., Sony, Paramount, and Universal, as well as 20th Century Fox (which is now owned by Disney, but wasn’t back in 2010) —and had to have a theatrical release. Movies released by production companies owned by studios (like Universal’s Focus Features or Sony’s Screen Gems, for example) don’t count. We’re talking about big and splashy studio rom-coms here, people.
Then, there’s the actual genre. To qualify for this list, a rom-com needs to primarily focus on two people who fall in love. There can be two A-plots—as in, while falling in love, the couple also takes down a slew of zombies—but the romance can’t be a subplot. There also needs to be a happy ending; it can’t be a romantic drama like The Last Song or, really, anything Nicholas Sparks. And movies about married couples who have fallen out of love but, later, realize they do still care for each other don’t count. Give us a meet cute, or we’re not counting it. (Side note here: Engaged couples who fall apart and come back together do count. If couples get divorced and fall back in love, that does count—that’s a second-chance romance.)
As for the actual ranking, each film is judged by a few different factors: its originality; how funny it is; how entertaining it is overall; and, importantly, the chemistry between the two leads.
Below, find our ranking of every modern studio rom-com, from worst to best.
34. Aloha (2015)
If this list was ranking the most absurd rom-com concepts, Aloha would rank at the top instead of the bottom. But we’re ranking based on the strength of the co-stars’ chemistry, the originality, and the movie’s entertainment level, and, to put it plainly, Aloha sucks. You won’t believe me when I lay out this premise: Military contractor Brian (Bradley Cooper) flies out to Hawaii to help billionaire Carson Welch (Bill Murray) launch nukes into space. When he meets Alison (Emma Stone)—whose main personality trait is that she really loves the sky—his worldview changes. Should he launch the nuke into space? Emma Stone—who is white, making this one of the most egregious examples of whitewashing during the 2010s—plays a character who is a quarter Hawaiian and a quarter Chinese; Allison shouts “I’m Hawaiian!!!!” at Brian near the film’s climax. Oh, and Rachel McAdams plays Brian’s old fling, who is now harboring his lovechild. What the actual hell?
33. Larry Crowne (2011)
Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts—should be fun, right? BZZT! Wrong. Maybe this movie is a good time if you take a shot every time someone says “Larry Crowne” (even Hanks, who directed and plays Larry Crowne, utters his full name around a dozen times), but watching it sober is just not an exciting trip. Larry is fired from his retail job and decides to go to college as an adult, meeting hot teacher Mercedes (Roberts). But Larry spends most of the movie kicking it with his fellow students instead, resulting in little-to-no chemistry between him and Mercedes. Mercedes spends most of the movie debating divorce with her husband (Bryan Cranston), who, at one point, shouts at his wife, “I like big knockers, and you don’t have any!”
32. How Do You Know (2010)
James L. Brooks rarely misses. Alas, How Do You Know is one of those occasional blunders. Reese Witherspoon stars as Lisa, a recently fired softball player who starts a fling with professional baseball player Matty (Owen Wilson). That’s not all: She also has some light flirtations with a businessman (Paul Rudd) on the hook for fraud. Should she pick the wealthy pro sports hunk or the sad finance guy? It’s really a hard choice, isn’t it? Kidding—still, Lisa picks the wrong damn guy. The only thing memorable about this movie is how bad it flopped at the box office—probably one of the reasons studios don’t release more than one or two rom-coms a year these days.
31. New Year’s Eve (2011)
There were two of these big, splashy holiday-based studio rom-coms with a huge ensemble following the success of Love Actually. Both are absolutely terrible. This one is slightly worse.
30. Valentine’s Day (2010)
Again: There were two of these big, splashy holiday-based studio rom-coms with a huge ensemble following the success of Love Actually. Both are absolutely terrible. This one is slightly better, perhaps because it features Taylor Swift.
29. The Bounty Hunter (2010)
The Bounty Hunter had a shot at becoming the next big sexy action-rom-com. Unfortunately, it stars Gerard Butler. Sorry, Butler Nation—this guy just doesn’t have what it takes to be a charming leading man. Put him in every action movie ever, but dear lord, leave him out of rom-coms. Butler stars as Milo, who is—you guessed it—a bounty hunter. When Milo is assigned to hunt down his ex-wife Nicole (Jennifer Aniston), he has a damn good time doing it. We’re counting this one as a rom-com because Nicole and Milo are totally divorced but manage to fall back in love thanks to a series of illegal antics.
28. What Men Want (2019)
A spinoff of the 2000 Mel Gibson-led rom-com, What Men Want asks: What if women could hear all of the thoughts of every man on earth? Screw that; this is a goddamn horror movie. I don’t want to know anything on the average male mind. Nevertheless, in a cruel, fantastical turn of events, powerful sports agent Ali (Taraji P. Henson) develops the power to hear every man’s inner dialogue. This may be really helpful when it comes to convincing new players to sign at her agency, but it drives her crazy in the world of love. The movie seems to suggest that Ali can only get ahead in life by knowing what every man is thinking—false! Another unbelievable aspect: Pete Davidson plays a gay man who loves to dab. Alright. Pass.
27. Blended (2014)
We’ve entered the realm of rom-coms that are actually worth watching—if you have nothing else to entertain yourself, like if you’re on an airplane or something. Blended is a fine movie (albeit kind of racist?) if you need something to watch on a cross-country flight, but don’t pick it if anything above it on this list is available. It still isn’t good, although it prominently features a vacation, so maybe it’ll inspire a good trip? Similar to The Brady Bunch, Blended follows divorced mom Lauren (Drew Barrymore) and single dad Jim (Adam Sandler) as they’re accidentally sent on a family vacation together with their kids. Say it with me now: “Wait, there’s only one bed?!”
26. Just Go With It (2011)
Adam Sandler was big on making movies about divorced women with children in the early 2010s, apparently, and Just Go With It follows that trend. Danny (Sandler) is a man who pretends to be married in order to attract non-committed women—does this actually work for people?—until, one day, he actually wants to stay with one of the girls he sleeps with. Unfortunately, after finding his faux wedding ring, she bolts. Danny uses his work bestie Katherine (Jennifer Aniston) to lure the young woman into thinking he’s getting a divorce. She just goes with it—get it? Come for a snarky Aniston, stay for Nicole Kidman sashaying her hips in a hula competition.
25. Isn’t It Romantic (2019)
The main draw of Isn’t It Romantic is Rebel Wilson, who is an absolute comedy legend, totally charming, and should star in a rom-com every year. But the trend of Rebel Wilson’s body being the butt of the joke in every movie? That needs to go. It happened in Pitch Perfect, in Senior Year, and also in Isn’t It Romantic, which sees down-on-her-luck Natalie (Wilson) waking up in a real life rom-com. Natalie is absolutely shocked that, out of all people in the world, hunky Blake (Liam Hemsworth) is obsessed with her. Why is it so funny and unbelievable that Blake would fall for a charming, gorgeous Rebel Wilson? Who wouldn’t fall for Rebel Wilson? Ultimately, she has a great friends-to-lovers arc with Adam Devine’s character—those two are really so great together.
24. Bros (2022)
Bros had a lot of promise. Touting itself as the “first gay studio rom-com”—as if Love, Simon doesn’t exist—and “Nora Ephron on poppers”—as if Bewitched doesn’t exist—Billy Eichner’s splashy summer rom-com seemed like it had the goods to turn the genre around for the better in the 2020s. Unfortunately, it tanked at the box office. Fans were quick to blame the general public for its poor performance, claiming it was “homophobic;” after watching it, I can confirm that the real reason this movie made no money is because it’s nihilistic and bland. Eichner is as irritating as ever as podcaster Bobby, who is working on the first LGBTQ+ museum in NYC as he flirts with Aaron (Luke MacFarlane), a sporty guy who is totally out of his league. The romance is cute! The endless rants about feeling pointless in this world and bizarre aggression towards bisexual people, however, are not.
23. Yesterday (2019)
Apparently we’ve arrived at the “movies that have great promise but fumble the execution” part of the list, and Yesterday is the poster child for this trend. Struggling singer Jack (Himish Patel) wakes up one day as the only man who remembers The Beatles and their discography. As soon as he starts recording their old hits, Jack skyrockets to worldwide fame. But over the course of the movie, Jack comes to realize that his real love isn’t music—it’s his best friend Ellie (Lily James). Patel and James in a movie together should result in a total worldwide smash. Instead, the notes come out pretty flat. Plus, where in the ever-loving hell was Ana de Armas???
22. Ticket to Paradise (2022)
Ticket to Paradise? More like Ticket to Very Boring-adise. Ha…ha. If you didn’t think that joke was funny, you won’t find Ticket to Paradise’s humor much better. The French hunk from Emily in Paris is bit by a snake. Divorced Julia Roberts and George Clooney try to save their daughter, Kaitlyn Dever, from moving to Bali with her dreamboat new boyfriend. One might think the romance is between Roberts and Clooney. It isn’t! Huge mistake.
21. She’s Out of My League (2010)
It may be hard to believe this in 2024, but back in 2010, the quirked-up skinny white boy was the least-desirable romantic partner possible. Kirk (Jay Baruchel) is one of those twiggy nice guys, and because of that, he can’t seem to find a girl to match his energy. Shockingly, the hottest babe in town, Molly (Alice Eve), falls fast and hard for Kirk. Why is she going for this dweeb? The concept is a little demeaning, but skinny white guys can use a little teasing here and there, so all-in-all, She’s Out of My League is a fun time. Great rom-com job here, too—Kirk is a TSA agent, really adding to his character’s awkward lack of confidence. Who wants to date a TSA agent?
20. The Five-Year Engagement (2012)
The Five-Year Engagement is barely a rom-com, but we’ll count it in honor of Emily Blunt and Jason Segel, two rom-com icons. Tom (Segel) and Violet (Blunt) get engaged at the top of the movie—yay! We’re happy for them because they’re so cute together! Woohoo! But over the course of the film, they take for-freakin’-ever to plan their actual wedding. They move. They break up. At times, this slow-as-hell movie definitely made me question if there was any comedy at all. But the sweet wedding at the end, featuring MOH Alison Brie and Best Man Chris Pratt, makes the movie worth it in the end. Stick it out!
19. Life as We Know It (2010)
The cutest baby ever makes an appearance in Life as We Know It, already making it worth a watch. Holly (Katherine Heigl) and Eric’s (Josh Duhamel) lives are turned upside down when their friends suddenly die in a car crash—and even more so when they find out they’ve been entrusted to be the guardians of their tiny baby. Worse, Holly and Eric hate each other after going on one terrible date a decade ago. There’s a little too much set-up to get Life as We Know It rolling, but the enemies-to-lovers shtick is pretty solid. Plus, again: Baby!
18. This Means War (2012)
Nobody wants to write a good, honest-to-god love triangle these days. This Means War did it, and for that, the spy rom-com deserves some applause. If I were Reese Witherspoon, I wouldn’t be able to decide between Chris Pine and Tom Hardy. That’s an impossible decision to make. And yet, Lauren (Witherspoon) is tasked with making it when she meets undercover spies Tuck (Hardy) and FDR (Pine)—yes, he goes by FDR for some reason, although his real name is Franklin Foster—on two separate dates. The pair, old friends, then use every CIA operative trick in the book to forcibly win her over. It’s hard to guess who she’ll end up with! I love an unpredictable ending. (But I enjoy predictable ones, too.)
17. Something Borrowed (2011)
Something Borrowed presents a tricky conundrum: What happens when you fall in love with your best friend’s fiancé? Rachel (Ginnifer Goodwin) has had the hots for Dex (Colin Egglesfield) since law school, but her more outgoing BFF Darcy (Kate Hudson) got him first. Now, the couple is about to be married—and after a few drinks at Rachel’s surprise birthday party, she finally reveals her true feelings to Dex. Goodwin and Hudson are spectacular, but the real standout is John Krasinski, who should’ve been the leading man. In fact, why didn’t Krasinski star in a billion rom-coms after winning the hearts of millions on The Office? Do one with your wife Emily Blunt, John! The world is waiting.
16. Leap Year (2010)
Amy Adams is a national treasure, and Leap Year is proof. Anna (Adams) is sick and tired of waiting for her husband Jeremy (Adam Scott) to propose—but per Irish tradition, women can propose every fourth year on Leap Day. Anna journeys to Ireland, where Jeremy is on a work trip, but gets stuck along the way. Luckily, she meets cranky (but super-handsome) Declan (Matthew Goode), who agrees to journey across the rolling green hills to find Anna’s husband in waiting. Declan and Anna are super fiery, resulting in an exciting enemies-to-lovers road trip.
15. What’s Your Number? (2011)
Super-clever title here: What’s Your Number? is what you’d ask a cute stranger at the bar, but in this movie, it’s the title of a dating column that sends—prepare for a great rom-com name here—Ally Darling (Anna Faris) into a dating spiral. When she discovers her body count is above average, Ally decides the next man she sleeps with will be the last. But then she sleeps with her boss (Joel McHale), leaving her with a list of exes and flings to choose from if she wants to keep that number down. Constantly naked neighbor Colin (Chris Evans) agrees to help—but they CANNOT SLEEP TOGETHER! Absolutely NOT. NEVER. (Hint: They will.)
14. Marry Me (2022)
Marry me, marry me, say yes! If I could include the Marry Me trailer on this list, it would take the top spot. Unfortunately, we have to consider the entire movie here, and the J.Lo starring flick drags a bit more than that enigmatic teaser. Singer Kat Valdez (Jennifer Lopez) plans on marrying her superstar boyfriend Bastian (Maluma) on stage at a live concert but, mere seconds before she’s set to go on, one of her assistants shows her a leak that he cheated on her. Hurt and confused, Kat chooses a normie from the audience—Charlie (Owen Wilson)—to marry her instead. Campy and absurd, Marry Me marked the return of Lopez as one of the rom-com greats.
13. About Time (2013)
About Time is somewhat of a romantic drama. We follow Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) as he learns how to use his genetic time traveler powers, passed down by his father (Bill Nighy). The father-son stuff is all pretty touching, but the romance between Tim and Mary (Rachel McAdams) is really the A-plot here—Tim attempts to get Mary to fall in love with him by time traveling over and over again to win her over. Sure, it’s a bit more dramatic than some of these other titles, but when About Time is funny, it’s got the same kind of smart humor you’d see in a Nora Ephron movie. For example: Tim runs around for an evening to save his friend’s play and win Mary over at the same dinner over and over and over again, Groundhog Day-style. Plus, Gleeson and McAdams make for a stunning, eccentric, charming, wonderful duo—and they end up happily ever after! It counts.
12. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has perhaps the most 2010s vibe out of every movie on this list—when you think of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, you think of 2010. (Or maybe you think of 2023, because of Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.) The manic pixie dream girl trope, larger-than-life techno graphics, and Michael Cera’s adorkable charm make this rom-com—yes, it’s a rom-com!—as brilliant as it is. There are a few iffy lines about women here and there, which knocks the movie down on the list. But Scott (Cera) and Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) belong together, even if it takes battling several exes to see them work things out.
11. Trainwreck (2015)
Let’s address the elephant in the room, first: Amy Schumer isn’t the most endearing Hollywood star around, these days. But Bill Hader is! Plus, the sole Judd Apatow flick on this list has to end up near the top. Trainwreck follows men’s magazine columnist Amy (Schumer) as she attempts to profile sports doctor Aaron (Hader)—but ends up sleeping with him. Although Amy prefers a chaotic dating life (she’s a bit of a TRAINWRECK!), Aaron is down-to-earth and charming, challenging everything Amy’s come to know about herself. Trainwreck spins the modern rom-com on its head; usually, men are portrayed as non-committal agents of chaos while the women tame them. This is what happens when those roles are flipped.
10. Bridget Jones’ Baby (2016)
Never bet against Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger). When the first movie was released in 2001 YEAR, Brits were ticked that an American had been cast to play the bombshell blonde, but Zellweger proved she was perfect for the role. And when the third installment of Bridget Jones’s Diary was announced—Bridget Jones’ Baby—a lot of audiences were confused: Did we need another chapter of this story? Wouldn’t Bridget just end up with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) all over again? Yes and yes. Bridget and Mark have broken up at the beginning of the third movie, but through that iconic narration and a surprise pregnancy, the pair can surely reunite for more love.
9. Love & Other Drugs (2010)
Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway play two diametrically opposed people in Love & Other Drugs. Jamie (Gyllenhaal) is a pharmaceutical salesman who falls for Maggie (Hathaway), a Parkinson’s patient who has every reason to believe big pharma is ruining her life. A love story becomes even more enthralling when it’s somewhat forbidden, and Love & Other Drugs is like Romeo & Juliet if the invention of Viagra happened in the middle of the movie. Any movie is 15 times better with Hathaway, who really runs away with this rom-com.
8. Anyone But You (2023)
Speaking of Shakespeare, here comes a modern day retelling of The Taming of the Shrew. Anyone But You made waves last year even before the film’s release, due to rumors that co-stars—Glen Powell and engaged Sydney Sweeney—were flirting a little too much. That only made the movie more exciting. Anyone But You is sexy, sleek, and made so much money that we hope it convinces studios to totally revive the rom-com as we approach the mid-2020s. After one chance encounter, enemies Bea (Sweeney) and Ben (Powell) have to play it cool when their loved ones plan to get married.
7. No Strings Attached (2011)
Not to be confused with Friends With Benefits, almost exactly the same movie, also released in 2011. (In case you were curious: Friends With Benefits is a Screen Gems release, making it ineligible for this list. It would, however, be placed in the slot right above No Strings Attached, if we could include it.) Emma (Natalie Portman) and Adam (Ashton Kutcher) are two good friends who end up accidentally hooking up—and liking it waaaay too much. They agree to get these sexy feelings out of their system with absolutely no commitments. Fun, simple, and hot, No Strings Attached is as light and breezy as a FWB relationship.
6. Love, Simon (2018)
It is a crime that Love, Simon is both the only high school movie and the second LGBTQ+ rom-com to end up on this list. Studios should be pursuing more of these, because this sweet little movie is absolutely fantastic—and even inspired a TV show spinoff! Simon (Nick Robinson) comes out to the world as gay at the same time as he’s trying to find the potential love of his life online. What’s great about Love, Simon is how humble it is; even though the film certainly understands how far it’s pushing the rom-com needle forward, it doesn’t try to be a big, splashy blockbuster. The movie is just trying to ensure teens feel confident in their identities and love lives, and it does a damn good job of doing so. Plus: Jennifer Garner!
5. The Lost City (2022)
Welcome to the top five modern rom-coms. The Lost City has perhaps the most original, exciting premise out of everything here: Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) is a romance novelist who writes sexy adventure books, and Dash McMahon (Channing Tatum) is the ripped model who poses on all of her covers. The pair have a somewhat symbiotic business relationship—she writes the books, he gets the modeling gigs, horny women buy the books—but nothing all that serious. Until: They find themselves stranded in the jungle together, a world explorer hungry for the details they may or may not know about a lost city. Bullock and Tatum have white-hot chemistry, but the real reason to watch The Lost City is the whip-smart humor.
4. The Fall Guy (2024)
At the time of publication, The Fall Guy hasn’t been released in theaters yet, so we’ll spare you from spoilers. What you need to know is that the movie follows washed up stunt-man Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) as he works on an upcoming action film directed by his ex-girlfriend, Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt)—while hiding the fact that he’s actually been employed to find missing lead actor Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Barbenheimer fans, your time is now. Gosling and Blunt fit together like a pair of giggling puzzle pieces. “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” is featured. Need I say more?
3. Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
The wedding scene in Crazy Rich Asians lives in my head RENT. FREE. Play it on a loop forever. Let me watch it on the big screen again while Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again plays in the theater next door. The summer of 2018 showed us the studio rom-com at its height—mainly because Crazy Rich Asians was such a gigantic hit. That said, we bumped this one below the next title—you may already have an idea of what it is—because Awkwafina’s role is god awful. Minus 10 points for terrible comedy. Rachel (Constance Wu) journeys to Singapore to meet boyfriend Nick’s (Henry Goulding) mega-, uber-, super-freakin’-duper rich family while celebrating a wedding. They do break up for a hot second, so this counts as a rom-com, because Rachel and Nick have to look past their differences to end up together in the end.
2. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)
I shouldn’t need to explain myself here. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is not only one of the greatest movies ever made, it comes in almost at the top of our rom-com list. Lily James—playing young Donna, who was originally played by Meryl Streep—is THE rom-com It Girl, parading through a Greek orange farm in a tangerine-colored skirt while singing “The Name of the Game” by ABBA and daydreaming about the love of her life, Sam (Jeremy Irvine). Brilliant. Oscars should’ve been given for this triumphant filmmaking. Now: Let’s see the prequel to this prequel where Cher and Andy Garcia (FERNANDO!) fall in love.
1. Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)
Although Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is a crowd-pleaser, when it comes to the modern rom-com, nothing can top Crazy, Stupid, Love, which set Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone on their paths to success. This movie (kind of, not really) gave us La La Land! Crazy, Stupid, Love bridged the gap between the Judd Apatow-style, more late-2000s-style rom-com—which saw unhappy married couples finding love all over again—with the sexier, more contemporary 2010s rom-com. A hot younger flirt Jacob (Gosling) teaches aging Cal (Steve Carrell) how to pick up “easy” women after his wife (Julianne Moore) asks for a divorce. At the same time, Jacob is learning how to commit himself to one woman instead of a dozen after falling for sweet, lovable Hannah (Stone). A big plot twist shows Jacob and Cal that they’re more connected than they could’ve ever imagined, leading to a chaotic scene in Cal’s front yard that never fails to crack me up. Crazy, Stupid, Love is the epitome of the modern rom-com, with flip-flopping marriages, a splashy ensemble cast, and even a great homage to Dirty Dancing. Leave it to Emma Stone to be at the top and bottom of this list.
