The full-length trailer for The Love Hypothesis was unveiled on Wednesday, offering a first look Lili Reinhart and Tom Bateman star as two academics caught in an unexpected fake-dating setup. Based on the best-selling romance novel by Ali Hazlewood, the film brings the book’s blend of academic wisdom, quirky chemistry, and slow-burn romance to the screen.
Trailer shows what this rom-com is about
In the trailer released on August 26, Olive (Lili Reinhart) is a PhD student who has always been more focused on her academic career than romance. But things go awry when she discovers that her best friend Ego (Rachel Marsh) is interested in Olive’s former crush, Jeremy (Nicolas DuVernay).
In an attempt to convince Ah that she has moved on, Olive does something completely unexpected. She kisses Adam Carlson (Tom Bateman), a strict and intimidating professor who has earned the nickname “Doctor Evil” for his famously cold personality. An impulsive kiss soon leads to a fake-dating deal between the two. Olive sees a chance to prove to her friend that Jeremy is firmly past her, while Adam sees the arrangement as a way to reassure Stanford officials that he plans to stay, especially with his grant hanging in the balance.
“A serious girlfriend can change her mind,” he tells Olive in the trailer. But it becomes difficult to keep the acting going when the chemistry between them starts to feel a little too real. It was supposed to be a simple arrangement, but it slowly turned into something that neither Olive nor Adam saw coming, leading Olive to wonder if their fake relationship could actually turn into the real thing.
creative team
Claire Scanlon, who directed the Netflix rom-com Set It Up, is at the helm of the film. The screenplay is written by Sarah Rothschild, who also wrote The Sleepover, with Elizabeth Cantillon serving as producer.
What Lili Reinhart and Tom Bateman said about the adaptation
Lilly opened up about the film at Prime Video’s Obsessed Fest in June and revealed that the romantic comedy was not something she initially planned to do. However, reading the script changed his mind. “The script was brought to me. I hadn’t read the book yet, but as soon as I got the script, I read the script, and then I went and read the book, and then I felt confident doing it. The importance of the book – it’s the source material that we wanted to respect completely, [which] I think our writer Sarah did exactly that. So yes, the heart of the book is in the film”.
Tom also revealed how closely the team stuck to Hazlewood’s book while making the film. He added that the novel was “always front and center” during the process, with everyone involved wanting to get the adaptation right for fans. He added, “Everyone involved had such a deep love for this book and doing justice to everyone who loved it.”
From fan fiction to bestselling novels
The Love Hypothesis took an unexpected path to the big screen. Ali Hazlewood’s story first began as Reylo fan fiction inspired by Star Wars and evolved into a novel that became a bestseller after Berkley’s release in 2021. The book also helped establish Hazlewood’s distinctive style of mixing romance with plenty of tension in academia, STEM, and the workplace.
When and where to watch the movie
With mock dating, academic drama, friendship and plenty of romantic tension, The Love Hypothesis is all set to bring Ali Hazlewood’s much-loved story to the screen. is part of the movie Prime Video’s “Passion is in Session” initiative, which includes a series of YA titles for young audiences. The Love Hypothesis will premiere globally on September 23 on Prime Video.