For a while now, Amazon MGM Studios has dominated the market of BookTok romance adaptations, with their latest feature, The Love Hypothesis (2026), airing recently to a healthy mix of reviews stuck somewhere between fan adoration and critical disapproval. A rom-com which treats the very genre as a set of scientific rules and systems to follow, it is unclear whether or not The Love Hypothesis proved a successful experimentation in romance, or fell short of achieving positive results.
It’s no surprise that more and more producers are pumping money into what has proved to be a profitable format in recent years. Following the success of Heated Rivalry, Off Campus, Sterling Point, and even the older The Summer I Turned Pretty, adapting novels with illustrated couples on the cover seems like a smart and safe investment. In this instance, the added attraction of seeing Riverdale’s own Lili Reinhart in the starring role only helped to build the anticipation of a story that is well-loved by online book clubs across BookTok and Bookstagram. An apparently winning formula if ever there was one.
However, the movie’s rigid loyalty to tried-and-tested methods may have been exactly what let it down. Some might argue that its lukewarm delivery of familiar tropes (fake dating and enemies-to-lovers), stock characters (one global-majority best friend as well as a gay one), and an easily-won happy ever after just isn’t enough for this story to take flight. The pacing is rushed from the get-go, with a clunky voiceover hastily covering the necessary exposition of Olive and Anh’s close friendship and Olive’s aversion to dating, before landing viewers in the plodding main storyline of Olive and Dr. Carlsen’s fake dating ploy. This plays out much as you’d expect it to, with awkward scenarios turning into a thawing of affection for one another, followed by the climax, complication and resolution all playing out in the last twenty minutes of the film. Maybe time flies when you’re in love – or trying to establish a believable romance whilst also hitting all the plot points.
These criticisms apply to most of the BookTok rom-coms that have been churned out recently, with the likes of People We Meet On Vacation (2026) equally staging a love story that may be easy to enjoy on first watch, but becomes just as easily forgettable after the credits roll. What seems the fatal flaw in these productions is relying on the – often fairly weak – romantic plot to do all the heavy lifting while characters and motives are lacking. Often, using a big name such as Reinhart’s is intended to cover up struggling co-star chemistry, but could never achieve the same result as casting two unknowns (say Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, for example) based purely on the spark they create within the story.
Image: "The Love Hypothesis" (Dir. Claire Scanlon, 2026) Amazon MGM Studios
It has to be said, though, that The Love Hypothesis’ commitment to an old-school form of rom-com is something that hasn’t been seen since the early 2000s, with many scenes and set-ups relying on a sickeningly sweet cliché, or a well-timed comedic break to hit home. It’s almost impressive, and just a little endearing, to watch a film so unashamedly lean into the tropes and clichés of the genre. After all, anyone ambitious enough to include the line “Olive, you’re edible” at the height of a serious scene deserves some recognition. As a homage to the likes of Bridget Jones’ Diary, She’s The Man and Notting Hill, this adaptation of Ali Hazelwood’s novel actually gives the fans what they want. And if that wasn’t enough, Lili Reinhart’s fashion references to the 90s and 00s holy texts of rom-com made sure the press tour would at least land the movie some media coverage.
Certainly not an experimental piece of film, and far from pioneering in its field in the same way Olive Smith hopes to, The Love Hypothesis conquers viewers by holding true to its roots in fan-fiction (a Reylo piece at that), embracing the cliché nature of rom-coms, and generating a story familiar enough to rely on an established fanbase, but new enough to keep them watching. Critics shouldn’t be too hasty to discredit its unashamed corny-ness, while fans might learn to be a bit more suspicious of unoriginal stereotypes, but while The Love Hypothesis might not bring anything new to the table, it has established that a successful formula will achieve the same results every time it’s tested.
