Romantic comedies have been rapidly decreasing in recent years. With releases becoming swiftly stagnant, it leaves viewers as myself rewatching older rom-coms yearning for newer romance comedies to hold similar charm as these older films had.
With strong feelings of nostalgia, older romance comedies carry a reputation to their name, becoming the staple of highly regarded movies to rewatch when you’re feeling like a hopeless romantic or in the mood for a silly movie.
According to BAZAAR, the number one rom-com is “When Harry Met Sally” (1998). The list also included older romcoms from the late 90s to mid 2000s. There were only a select few of them that were released recently that made the list.
With fewer rom-coms releasing nowadays, it makes it easier to choose which films are gems that tug at your heartstrings. Recent romcoms that have a certain charm when you watch them would be “A Family Affair” (2024), “Anyone but You” (2023) and “Crazy Rich Asians” (2018).
“Anyone but You” and “Crazy Rich Asians” were theatrically released. According to Box Office Mojo the budget for Crazy Rich Asians was $30 million and grossed about $239 million. While “Anyone but You” had a budget of $88 million and grossed about $220 million.
These films might not be for everyone, but there is still a demand for romance comedies. This genre of film just needs to be given a bigger budget and have an intriguing storyline that can follow a good old cliché.
In the streaming era, romance comedies appear to be switching streaming sites from where it airs. Netflix has been one of the biggest contenders for keeping viewers satisfied by releasing numerous romance comedies, but this doesn’t do justice to us romance comedy lovers.
There seems to have been this shift where, instead of rom-com movies, there have been rom-coms shows releasing more frequently. The media has shifted but that doesn’t stop people from craving a good romance comedy movie.
“Streaming services have been doing their bit when it comes to romantic TV shows: Nobody Wants This, Rivals, and Bridgerton were bonafide smash hits last year, all pointing to one thing: we love high-quality romance and would like you to produce more.” said Tina Burke from their article published in Mamamia.
With newer film genres strictly staying in the lane of being action, drama or horror, there’s a lack of lighthearted movies. With films more than half of the time including a subplot of romance, it leaves the genre of love and romance as something that is worn out to the viewers. This can deter people away from romance comedies as rom-coms have been getting less theatrical releases.
Although people can say that it’s good that the romance comedy genre isn’t getting as many releases because of the unrealistic standard and how unlikely it would happen, I prefer whimsy and corny movies. I’m not the only one who adores a good rom-com, as it clearly seems to be a desire for others to have more theatrical and heart fluttering films to be available.
