When Enemies Become Lovers
There's a reason why there are so many enemies-to-lovers films. After all, there's nothing more romantic than the power of love—and its ability to change your mind about someone.
Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice has been adapted multiple times and might be the most popular enemies-to-lovers story ever. However, everyone has their favorite version.
Though some prefer the 1995 BBC mini-series, starring Colin Firth as the headstrong Mr Darcy, others insist that the 2005 adaptation is the way to go.
Universal, Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Pride & Prejudice follows Mr Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen) and Miss Elizabeth Bennet's (Keira Knightley) slow-burn love story. From the beginning, their misconceptions of one another make them butt heads and quarrel at every turn. But actions speak louder than words—and against all odds, they end up falling for one another.
Universal, Pride & Prejudice (2005)
When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
Considered one of the greatest rom-coms of all time, When Harry Met Sally... follows two acquaintances turned friends turned lovers. Starring the effortlessly charming Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal, this duo proves that a rocky start can often lead to a "happily ever after".
Castle Rock, When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
Harry meets Sally when they share a ride to New York City.
Throughout this first meeting, they bicker and banter and generally disagree. However, after they cross each other's paths multiple times, they reconnect and even become best friends. As they grow closer and closer, they can't help but catch feelings for one another.
Castle Rock, When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Based on Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, this modern retelling stars Julia Stiles as the undateable Kat Stratford and Heath Ledger as bad boy Patrick Verona. This teen rom-com brilliantly explores the enemies-to-lovers trope.
Touchstone, 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
In the beginning, Patrick does not pursue Kat with genuine intentions. He only takes her out so that her sister will be allowed to date. Though she rejects him at first, Patrick persists.
Touchstone, 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
In a heart-fluttering twist, once Patrick gets to know Kat, he begins to realize that he no longer has to fake his feelings for Kat because they're all too real. Unfortunately, the truth threatens to rip them apart.
Touchstone, 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003)
In 2003's How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Kate Hudson plays magazine writer Andie Anderson while Matthew McConaughey plays advertising executive Benjamin Barry—characters thrown together thanks to a hilarious twist of fate.
Lynda Obst Productions, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003)
The story follows Andie, who decides to date a man for research—acting so poorly that he'll have no choice but to dump her. This way she can write a column about her experience.
But there's just one problem.
Lynda Obst Productions, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003)
You see, Andie winds up dating Ben, who, unbeknownst to her, has made a bet that he can make any woman fall in love with him. If he succeeds, he gets to land a major campaign at work. As you might imagine, these two become enemies:
Andie attempts to drive Ben away while Ben works tirelessly to win her heart.
Lynda Obst Productions, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003)
However, the truth winds up being a hard pill to swallow. When real feelings start to brew, they have to grapple with the foundation of lies upon which they've built their relationship.
Lynda Obst Productions, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
The Hating Game (2021)
The Hating Game is a relatively new romantic comedy released in 2021, starring Lucy Hale and Austin Stowell. The entire premise of this film is geared toward anyone looking for a fresh enemies-to-lovers take.
BCDF Pictures, The Hating Game (2021)
The Hating Game (2021)
Main characters Lucy and Josh both work for publishing companies and are the antithesis of one another. However, they become business rivals after their companies merge, meaning they wind up competing for a promotion. That's when they come to a wild agreement.
BCDF Pictures, The Hating Game (2021)
The Hating Game (2021)
Because they can't stand one another, they both agree that whoever loses the promotion has to hand in their resignation.
This, of course, takes a messy turn once both Lucy and Josh begin to feel pangs of attraction for one another.
BCDF Pictures, The Hating Game (2021)
The Ugly Truth (2009)
2009's The Ugly Truth follows the tried-and-true formula of opposites attract. Katherine Heigl plays Abby Richter—a hopeless romantic who produces a morning show. But her life takes a dramatic turn after she meets Mike Chadway, played by Gerard Butler, who hosts a crass television show with a cynical outlook on relationships.
Columbia, The Ugly Truth (2009)
The Ugly Truth (2009)
Abby initially despises Mike, who winds up being hired on at her work to boost the ratings of her morning show. Both are resistant to one another's outlooks on life. However, when Mike agrees to help Abby seduce the man of her dreams, they end up growing closer to one another than either of them thought possible.
Columbia, The Ugly Truth (2009)
Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
Based on the massively popular novel by Casey McQuinston, 2023's Red, White & Royal Blue serves up a romance that sizzles with an unbelievable chemistry shared by its two leads.
Amazon Studios, Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
In this delightful fictional universe, Nicholas Galitzine plays the Prince of England, Henry, who winds up falling for the American president's son, Alex, played by Taylor Zakhar Perez.
However, they start off as sworn enemies.
Amazon Studios, Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
After finding themselves in a sticky situation at a royal wedding, Alex and Henry don't initially like one another at all. However, after being forced into close proximity with one another, they eventually give in to the growing attraction between them.
The problem is that they have to keep their affair a secret.
Amazon Studios, Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
Runaway Bride (1999)
1999's Runaway Bride makes no logical sense—but whoever said that needed to be a requirement of phenomenal romantic comedy? Nobody. Teaming up for the second time, Julia Roberts and Richard Gere do a hilarious job of making this enemies-to-lovers story an enjoyable escape.
Paramount, Runaway Bride (1999)
Runaway Bride (1999)
The film follows Maggie Carpenter, who has the unfortunate reputation of leaving all of her grooms at the altar. However, when New York columnist Ike Graham proceeds to pen a scathing piece on her, branding her a "man-eater," he becomes her enemy.
Paramount, Runaway Bride (1999)
Runaway Bride (1999)
Fired for his improperly fact-checked article about Maggie, Ike embarks on a mission to right his wrong. He needs to publish a truthful piece about her. In getting to know her, though, Ike falls head-over-heels in love with the "Runaway Bride". The only question is:
Will she leave him high and dry as well?
Paramount, Runaway Bride (1999)
27 Dresses (2008)
What happens when a woman who loves weddings meets a cynical wedding hater? You get 2008's 27 Dresses, starring Katherine Heigl and James Marsden.
Spyglass Entertainment, 27 Dresses (2008)
27 Dresses (2008)
Jane Nichols is the unlucky-in-love protagonist, who has loyally attended 27 of her friends' weddings and has been a bridesmaid for every one of them. On one fateful night, she has to participate in two weddings at the same time, taxiing between each one.
But during one cab ride, she meets an intolerable man.
Spyglass Entertainment, 27 Dresses (2008)
27 Dresses (2008)
While sharing a cab, Jane meets the writer Kevin Doyle, who doesn't understand weddings at all. When she accidentally leaves her planner on the seat, Doyle sees her many wedding engagements and gets the idea for an exciting article.
Soon their lives become intertwined, and both realize there is so much more to one another than meets the eye.
Spyglass Entertainment, 27 Dresses (2008)
A Walk To Remember (2002)
Sometimes enemies-to-lover movies can end in tears. An excellent example is 2002's A Walk to Remember, based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks and starring Mandy Moore and Shane West.
Warner Bros., A Walk to Remember (2002)
A Walk To Remember (2002)
This film follows two high school students:
Landon Carter and Jamie Sullivan. Jamie is everything Landon is not. She's religious, studious, unpopular, and keeps to herself. Landon, on the other hand, is your quintessential bad boy, who kicks off this teen drama by getting in trouble with the law.
Warner Bros., A Walk to Remember (2002)
A Walk To Remember (2002)
Forced to do community service, Landon finds himself spending more and more time with Jamie—but he betrays her by ignoring her at school. To win her forgiveness, Landon has to turn his back on everything he knows.
Though this unlikely pair eventually falls for one another—one terrible secret changes their lives forever.
Warner Bros., A Walk to Remember (2002)
Anyone But You (2023)
Thanks to 2023's Anyone but You, many are claiming that romantic comedies are having a comeback. If this is true, the film definitely used the enemies-to-lovers formula to its advantage.
Columbia, Anyone But You (2023)
Anyone But You (2023)
Two of the trendiest stars in Hollywood take the reins in this film.
Sydney Sweeney plays Bea and Glen Powell plays Ben, who initially have a very romantic first connection. But their lines get tragically crossed.
Columbia, Anyone But You (2023)
Anyone But You (2023)
After staying the night at Ben's apartment, Bea chooses to flee in the morning—only for her to immediately change her mind. However, when she arrives back at his place, she overhears Ben ruthlessly insulting her while speaking with a friend.
After this fiasco, they go their separate ways—but down the road, they meet again and all manner of hilarity ensues.
Columbia, Anyone But You (2023)
Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
In 2002's Sweet Home Alabama, an estranged husband and wife go head to head. Melanie Smooter (Reese Witherspoon) returns to her hometown to secure a divorce from her ex-husband, Jake Perry (Josh Lucas), so that she can be free to marry her new beau, Andrew Hennings (Patrick Dempsey).
However, problems arise when Jake refuses to sign the divorce papers.
Touchstone, Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
As Melanie attempts to get Jake to give her a divorce, she begins to fall for him all over again. As her wedding date draws nearer and nearer, she is torn between two very different men—not to mention two very different ways of life.
Touchstone, Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
The Cutting Edge (1992)
1992's The Cutting Edge might be one of the most underrated romantic comedies. Starring Moira Kelly and DB Sweeney, romance and sports collide in this enemies-to-lover story.
The Cutting Edge (1992)
The film follows a famous figure skater named Kate Moseley who winds up paired with a former NHL hockey player after her dismal reputation repels all other potential skating partners. Unsurprisingly, these athletes butt heads from the very beginning.
The Cutting Edge (1992)
In learning how to figure skate, Doug Dorsey must learn to tolerate Kate's penchant for perfectionism. At first, they absolutely detest one another, but as they learn to work together, a distinct attraction grows between them.
You've Got Mail (1998)
If anyone knows how to write an enemies-to-lovers plot, it's Nora Ephron.
Acting as co-writer of You've Got Mail, she brings the same zest she brought to When Harry Met Sally... This time, however, we see Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks inhabit the rival characters of Kathleen Kelly and Joe Fox.
Warner Bros., You've Got Mail (1998)
You've Got Mail (1998)
The stakes are pretty high in You've Got Mail. Kathleen Kelly owns a local bookstore while Joe Fox plans to establish a major chain bookstore that will inevitably push her out of business.
Joe represents everything Kathleen despises—and so audiences have to suspend their disbelief as these two enemies wind up falling in love with one another.
Warner Bros., You've Got Mail (1998)
No Reservations (2007)
In 2007, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart teamed up to bring a delicious romance to life. No Reservations follows the head chef of a popular restaurant, Kate Armstrong. However, trouble arises when a new sous chef gets hired.
Castle Rock, No Reservations (2007)
No Reservations (2007)
Sous-chef Nick Palmer initially gets under Kate's skin as his cooking style is so different from hers—more free and infused with fun. He is an obvious contrast to her strict methods of working, and she begins to see him as a threat. But in the end, he ends up being exactly what she needs.
Castle Rock, No Reservations (2007)
