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Review by James Lindorf
If you ask someone how they feel about romantic comedies, you often get one of three responses. They either love them, hate them, or used to love them. With the possible exception of people who claim superhero fatigue, no other genre is more maligned or celebrated for its tropes. “The Threesome” from director Chad Hartigan and first-time screenwriter Ethan Ogilby may not turn the genre on its head and convert the haters, but it just might have what it takes to relight the spark for those who have grown weary of the genre. “The Threesome” will begin a limited theatrical engagement on September 5th.
What started as a typical day of Connor (Jonah Hauer-King) pining over his long-time crush Olivia (Zoey Deutch) became something life-altering. A little push from his best friend Greg ( Jaboukie Young-White) to talk to Jenny (Ruby Cruz), a lonely woman at the bar, led Olivia, who was frustrated with her married hook-up Kevin (Josh Segarra), and perhaps a little jealous, to steer them into a threesome. The encounter sparks a relationship between Connor and Olivia, and their love grows quickly, leading them to plan a life together after Olivia discovers she is pregnant. Life couldn’t be better in Connor’s mind until Jenny, who is also pregnant, shows up at his door.
The normal cycle of a romcom that includes the meet-cute, the characters falling in love, them breaking up due to a misunderstanding, and the happy ending does not apply to “The Threesome.” Connor and Olivia have known each other for years; the threesome isn’t even their first time having sex. While they do fall in love, the reason they hit a rough patch is well defined and understandable, and the ending is just as complex and messy as you can imagine. This is great for people who want something new or can relate to making a life-altering mistake, being afraid of commitment, or having an unrequited love.
Perhaps the strangest thing about “The Threesome” is that the M of this FFM event is the weakest element of the film. Hauer-King gives a good performance, but Connor is the most inconsistently written and unlikable character. Connor is either the good guy who will give anyone the shirt off his back trope or overtly hinting to Jenny that she should get an abortion. She is a delightful grad student, and Connor is frequently rude to her simply because she is not Olivia. It is a grating personality choice until it is swept under the rug with no acknowledgement at the end of the film. Greg offers some good comedic relief to Connor’s mood swings, but that is his sole purpose, and he has no character development beyond that.
“The Threesome” shines when it comes to its two leading women, Zoey Deutch and Ruby Cruz. They share many commonalities in their desires for friendship and love, as well as their fears of being first-time mothers, yet they are opposites in almost every other way. Olivia is outgoing and crass, while Jenny is reserved due to her rigorous religious upbringing. Deutch has the bigger role and is given more emotional range, and she nails every moment. You want to be her best friend, to support her and yell at her when she needs it.
Jenny has a very understandable desire to break out of the mold her parents have tried to force her into. She has more to offer than a womb and can do more than share a pew with a future husband. On the surface, she is the much better match for “good guy” Connor. She is bright, sweet, friendly, and even works at a soup kitchen. Cruz gives an endearing performance, giving Jenny this sad but hopefully Golden Retriever quality. She pulls on all of your protective instincts, which makes Connor come off as even more of a jerk when he keeps trying to push her to the side.
“The Threesome” is a great first script for Ogilby, but there is room for improvement, and without the quality performances, it is easy to see it falling much flatter. In addition to a lack of character depth, timeline issues raise questions about the characters’ lives around the time of the threesome and the subsequent weeks. When the movie ended, I was left with the feeling of not knowing the whole picture, and after loving their characters so much, I would have spent another 20 minutes with Olivia and Jenny. “The Threesome” is fun, charming, and a little messy, coming in at a 3.5 out of 5.
Director: Chad Hartigan
Producer: Vince Jolivette, Tim White, Trevor White, Steve Shapiro
Screenwriter: Ethan Ogilby
Distributor: Vertical
Production Co: Star Thrower, Filmopoly
Rating: R (Brief Drug Use|Sexual Material|Language)
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Limited theatrical): September 5th, 2025
Runtime: 1h 52m
