It isn’t often that a story jumps from the niche corners of internet fanfiction to a mainstream romantic comedy, but Prime Video’s adaptation of Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis pulls it off effortlessly.
Rather than burying its internet origins, the film leans into the absurdity of the “fake dating” trope while grounding it in the hyper-competitive, male-dominated ecosystem of university STEM departments.
By the time the film reaches the infamous ‘Chapter 16’ moment from the book, the emotional payoff feels completely earned. Claire Scanlon, the director behind Netflix’s 2018 Set It Up too, clearly knows the kind of romantic comedy she is making. The success of any romance rests entirely on the shoulders of its leads, and the casting here is molecularly perfect. The film really comes alive when Lili Reinhart and Tom Bateman share the screen. She plays Olive with an easy awkwardness that never slips into the usual over-the-top rom-com quirkiness. She feels like a young researcher who is genuinely overwhelmed by work, self-doubt and the pressure of trying to make it in a field where she constantly has to prove herself. Both of them also understand the fun of the fake-dating setup without playing it too heavily. Their banter, awkward moments and increasingly obvious attraction give the romance the spark it needs, while the quieter scenes allow the emotional connection between Olive and Adam to build at its own pace. The film has all the familiar ingredients: a fake relationship, a grumpy professor, an awkward heroine and a romance that takes its sweet time to unfold. But it never feels like Claire is ticking boxes on a rom-com checklist. She lets Olive and Adam’s relationship develop naturally, giving Lili Reinhart and Tom Bateman enough space to build that chemistry without rushing them towards the inevitable.
The slow-burn romance is where The Love Hypothesis works best. Olive and Adam are not rushed into falling for each other. Their relationship gets room to grow through small moments, awkward conversations and the trust they gradually build. Rachel Marsh (Anh) and Jaboukie Young-White (Malcolm) are also a lot of fun as Olive’s friends. They bring some of the lighter moments to the film, but their characters never feel like they are there simply to crack jokes. Their friendship with Olive feels lived-in and gives her a strong support system outside her relationship with Adam.
Because the film has taken the time to get them there, so when they finally stop pretending and acknowledge what they feel, the payoff lands.
