Static Media
2024 was an ... unusual year for romantic comedies. As the genre continues its slow-motion migration into television and streaming, films that fit this once-omnipresent bill are no longer as common, and are rarely box office juggernauts. When a truly great rom-com lands, it's a cause for bona fide celebration.
So when the /Film team looked at the state of the genre over the past twelve months to assemble our list of the 10 best romantic comedies of 2024, we found ourselves at an impasse. There simply weren't enough traditional rom-coms to fill an entire list, but there were a lot of movies that had rom-com flavor. Films that, it could be argued, were coming into being because of the absence of the more familiar forms of the genre — the next evolution, if you will.
So we hashed it out. And argued a bunch. (This was all recorded, and will be the subject of an upcoming episode of the /Film Daily podcast). The result was this list, which blends the more traditional romantic comedies of the year with the ones that color outside the lines a bit. A few of them even had members of the team shouting "But it's not a rom-com!" while others argued back with equal passion.
So, is our list of the best romantic comedies of 2024 a traditional one? Not in the slightest. Should it hopefully get you thinking, and wondering, about what actually defines a rom-com in 2024? We hope so.
10. Cora Bora
Brainstorm Media
Megan Stalter has been cutting her teeth in improv and sketch circles for years, but her scene-stealing performance as the perennially inappropriate assistant-turned-manager Kayla on "Hacks" helped launch her as one of the brightest new voices in comedy. It was only a matter of time before she was given the chance to lead a project, and the chaotically hilarious "Cora Bora" was a perfect fit. Stalter stars as Cora, a struggling musician who barrels through friends, dates, and support systems like an unleashed toddler at Disney World, who is in an open, long-distance relationship with her girlfriend, Justine (Jojo T. Gibbs).
Cora is freewheeling in Los Angeles while Justine is thriving back in Portland, but when she realizes that Justine has seemingly found a more committed partnership with the not-so-messy Riley (Ayden Mayeri), she rushes home to try and fix things only to make things even worse. This sends Cora on a spiraling attempt to get her life together and save her relationship while constantly crossing paths with an adorable indie musician named Tom (Manny Jacinto).
Cora fulfills the romantic-comedy trope of the walking disaster protagonist the audience can't help but love, but this and the constant meet-cutes with Tom are where the "rom-com traditions" of "Cora Bora" start and stop. Society is finally crawling toward understanding that love and relationship dynamics don't always look like a Nora Ephron movie, and "Cora Bora" is an encouraging sign of what expanding the subgenre can bring. (BJ Colangelo)
9. My Old Ass
Amazon MGM Studios
Just because a movie falls into the coming-of-age subgenre doesn't preclude it from also being a great romantic comedy, and that's exactly why "My Old Ass" is on this list. Maisy Stella plays Elliott, a teenage girl on the verge of graduating high school and taking the big step into the next chapter of her life. When she partakes in a celebratory mushroom trip in the woods with two friends, she ends up having a conversation with her 39-year-old self, played by Aubrey Plaza, who only imparts two bits of wisdom: Enjoy time with her family while she can, and avoid a boy named Chad.
Of course, Maisy ends up having a meet-cute with Chad (Percy Hynes White); he's cute, charming, and Maisy can't help but fall for him. Their relationship blossoms, and eventually, she starts to wonder exactly why her older self would caution her away from such a promising romance, but the older Elliott hasn't been responding to any of younger Elliott's texts (don't question the logic of how this quasi-time travel element works) to explain herself.
Without spoiling the end, "My Old Ass" is not only a lovely romantic comedy, but it's a movie about loving yourself and the potentially reckless decisions you make, even if they may end up causing serious emotional pain sometime down the road. It's a testament to how strong and influential young love can be, and how it can change the trajectory of our lives, for better and for worse. (Ethan Anderton)
8. Hot Frosty
Netflix
Hallmark has created a true cottage industry with its annual slate of Christmas movies. However, Netflix realized that they didn't have a monopoly on Lacey Chabert's career and decided to sign up the holiday movie maven to star in the charmingly ridiculous, self-aware rom-com that is "Hot Frosty." That title alone all but ensured a certain number of morbid curiosity clicks. What viewers might not have been expecting is a genuinely entertaining, by-the-numbers rom-com, albeit one with an extra layer of cheese and silliness.
The film sees the former voice of Meg on "Family Guy," Chabert, as a small town woman named Kathy who lost her husband a couple of years earlier. With the help of a magical scarf, she bring a surprisingly sexy snowman (Dustin Milligan) to life. Romance and comedy ensues. Chabert is very charming here and seems tailor-made for these sorts of films. Milligan is genuinely great as the fish-out-of-water, deeply in love man discovering what it means to be alive. Big credit to writer Russell Hainline for actually delivering a real movie around this silly premise.
In the same way that "Sharknado" worked by being so painfully self aware it almost became satire, "Hot Frosty" knows precisely what it is. That's why it works. It may exist because it's a joke, but the most surprising thing of all is that it's a good joke. Is it high art? Of course not, but these movies certainly don't have to be. This movie — and everyone involved — understands the assignment. (Ryan Scott)
7. Fly Me to the Moon
Apple Studios
In a year that didn't have very many rom-coms, it's a bummer that Apple's "Fly Me to the Moon" bombed at the box office when Sony released it in theaters. Director (and TV veteran) Greg Berlanti did his darndest to deliver a delightful, fun, frothy time at the movies, but audiences either didn't hear about it or just weren't interested. But now that it's streaming on Apple TV+, maybe more people will have the chance to catch up with it.
Despite seeming like it would be a fake movie advertised within the confines of another movie, "Fly Me to the Moon" is actually an extremely charming romantic comedy, and its leads, Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson, have terrific chemistry together. That's more than half the battle right there, and when you throw in some solid jokes, an entertaining conspiracy plot, and a supporting cast that includes dependable performers like Woody Harrelson and Jim Rash, this one ticks all the necessary boxes for a feel-good traditional rom-com. The icing on the cake is that the film is one of the rare movies of the past 10 years that actually lets Scarlett Johansson have some real fun on screen, something I almost forgot she was capable of after a decade of more serious work. If you're a fan of this genre, don't let this one slip through the cracks. (Ben Pearson)
6. Anora
Neon
"Anora" contains multitudes. It is, first and foremost, a showcase for rising star Mikey Madison, whose central performance as Anora "Ani" Mikheeva keeps writer-director Sean Baker's film firmly on track (if Madison doesn't get an Oscar nod for her performance as the gum-cracking, Brighton Beach native Ani, I will personally riot in the streets), but it's also a surprisingly tender and emotional story that manages to be action-packed and hilariously wild without sacrificing any of its heart. Also, despite what some people may say, it is a romantic comedy, because it's got the "rom" and the "com" in equal measure.
When Ani meets Ivan "Vanya" Zakharov (newcomer Mark Eydelshteyn), it's hard not to think of the classic romantic comedy "Pretty Woman" as Vanya sweeps Ani off her feet, offers her a tidy sum to be his girlfriend, and ultimately proposes to the dancer. Ani's Cinderella-style fantasy comes to a screeching halt when Vanya, pursued by his wealthy family's goons — including their henchman Igor (Yura Borisov) — takes off and leaves Ani to fend for herself, but truthfully, Vanya's departure clears the path for the movie's real romantic connection, which is between Igor and Ani. Every look Igor casts in Ani's direction is, frankly, swoon-worthy — a testament to Borisov's talent as he makes a meal out of one small glance — and the final scenes between these two characters contain some of the most romantic and touching moments I've seen on-screen this year. "Anora" is a rom-com, and it's one of the year's best. (Nina Starner)
5. Deadpool & Wolverine
Marvel Studios
Tell me if you've heard this one before.
An eccentric, lovable oddball ends up on an inconvenient road trip with a stoic, devastatingly handsome man of few words. Their meet cute was disruptive, and threw their lives totally out whack. At first, they hate each other. They get on each other's nerves. They bicker and fight and sling insults. But there's something there. An undeniable chemistry. The suggestion that these two very different people are perhaps made for each other. Ultimately, their passion explodes into pure, animalistic physicality in the backseat (and front seat) of their automobile. The tough guy lets his guard down and reveals his inner soul. The wacky one learns a thing or two about growing up, and personal responsibility. These two are soulmates.
Marvel's "Deadpool & Wolverine" so slyly and cheekily riffs on the traditional romantic comedy formula that it may be invisible to many audiences, but it's totally there. And it confirms it as the most bicurious movie of 2024, the story of a queer weirdo and his straight-edge frenemy growing so close that they might as well just start making out by the time Logan literally bursts out of clothes. "Enemies to lovers" is one of the most popular tropes in romantic literature for a reason, and this movie knows it, and digs in its heels. (Jacob Hall)
4. Lisa Frankenstein
Focus Features
2024 has been a shockingly good year for monster***er movies, but the champion of them all is Zelda Williams and Diablo Cody's "Lisa Frankenstein." The '80s-set undead romance is a sweet, zany, and proudly weird story about high school outcast Lisa Swallows (Kathryn Newton), who inadvertently resurrects the corpse of a young man in the graveyard near her blended family's home. The more time she spends with The Creature (Cole Sprouse) the deeper in love she falls and the more willing she is to kill those who have wronged her in order to harvest their body parts for her new boyfriend.
Much like Cody's "Jennifer's Body" that came before it, "Lisa Frankenstein" is a misunderstood masterpiece that is embraced and beloved by the girlies who get it now but will be redeemed about 10 years from now when normies finally catch up to the rest of us. It's most obviously a coming-of-rage story about the odd girl in your math class unapologetically embracing her true nature, but none of it would be possible without the genuine romance at the center. Finding a person who sees you and values you for who you are at your core is a rarity in this life (and the afterlife), but because Lisa and The Creature get each other despite being born decades of years apart (and the fact one of them is actively still rotting), it's a sign that simple barriers like death cannot contain that true love. (BJ Colangelo)
3. The Fall Guy
Universal Pictures
Don't let some of the coolest action and stunts on the big screen in 2024 take away from the fact that "The Fall Guy" is a romantic comedy through and through. Ryan Gosling plays confident and charming Hollywood stunt performer Colt Seavers, and while the film may be adapted from a classic 1980s action TV show and features a complex plot full of deception and betrayal, the driving force of this movie is undoubtedly the romance that he strikes up with camerawoman turned director Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt).
After the opening scene sets up the wonderful romantic sparks between the stuntman and the camerawoman, a terrible accident takes Colt out of the stunt game completely, prompting him to seclude himself from show business and cut himself off from Jody entirely. But when Jody's big chance at blockbuster success is threatened with a missing hot shot leading man (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), Colt is pulled into both Hollywood stunt work again and the challenge of repairing his once fledgling relationship with Jody.
Gosing and Blunt have incredible chemistry in this movie, and the fact that their sputtering romance gets caught up in an intriguing action plot packed with outstanding fight sequences, car chases, and more incredible stunt showcases only makes "The Fall Guy" more entertaining. It also helps that Gosling is a truly gifted physical comedian, on top of being one of the most handsome men alive, and his back-and-forth with Blunt, especially in a creative side-by-side phone conversation, delivers everything you'd want from a romantic comedy and so much more. (Ethan Anderton)
2. The Idea of You
Prime Video
It was, indeed, a bit of an off year for traditional rom-coms. Good ones anyway. Enter director Michael Showalter's "The Idea of You," which is both a traditional rom-com in many ways but also one that plays with some truly untraditional, modern themes, particularly a romance with a large age gap. More specifically, a woman in her 40s dating a young, famous man in his mid-20s. The result is one of the most surprisingly charming, well-acted, heartstring-pulling bits of sincerely romantic cinema to come our way in 2024.
The film, based on Robinne Lee's novel of the same name, centers on Solène (Anne Hathaway), a 40-year-old single mom, and Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), the 24-year-old lead singer of the hottest boy band in the world. They cross paths at a meet and greet and strike up an unexpected, whirlwind romance that upends both of their lives. What follows is deeply, genuinely romantic (and sexy) stuff, with lots of human comedy along the way to break up the tension.
It's truly engrossing, in no small part thanks to two stellar lead performances from Hathaway and Galitzine. It's chemistry that one can't fake. This stuff works. If one wants to feel romantic feelings or love the idea of love, this movie gets that done in spades. It's earnest. It's affective. It rules. That's why I gave "The Idea of You" a glowing review after seeing it at SXSW. I only feel more strongly about it now.
In short? "The Idea of You" is straight-up a great movie, regardless of whatever genre we're talking about. (Ryan Scott)
1. Hit Man
Netflix
"Hit Man" is, without question, one of the best movies that came out in 2024 — and it's also the year's steamiest, funniest romantic comedy. There's no question that star Glen Powell, who co-wrote the film with auteur Richard Linklater, has proven himself in his genre; even in middling entries like "Anyone But You," he completely shines (and, vitally, looks at every one of his female co-stars as if they're angels who fell to Earth). In "Hit Man," Powell gets to have a whole lot of fun as Gary Johnson, a university professor by day and New Orleans Police Department asset by night who ends up playing a fake hitman, luring people who seek hitmen into confessing to their premeditated crimes and arresting them. When Gary meets Madison (Adria Arjona) — as he's masquerading as the confident lothario Ron — he talks her out of having her abusive husband killed, but he runs into a problem: Madison is down bad for Ron.
Arjona and Powell's chemistry is legitimately insane — there's a quick shot of them drinking wine in a hot tub that's one of the sexiest things you'll see on-screen all year — and Powell's raw charisma means his struggles as Gary and Ron are completely believable and compulsively watchable. Plus, "Hit Man" is funny; the now-infamous "Notes app" scene is, somehow, extremely funny and weirdly hot. (What can I say? Gary/Ron got me too.) "Hit Man" is fun, sexy, thrilling, and a phenomenal new entry into the romantic comedy hall of fame; in a year that felt weak for the genre as a whole, Linklater and Powell proved there are still plenty of twists and tricks that can elevate the standard rom-com formula. (Nina Starner)