Colleen Hoover's second book-to-screen adaptation is here, so what is the verdict?

Colleen Hoover fans, get ready. A new literary era is here with the anticipated release of Regretting You.

The new movie is based on the novel of the same name, a successful 2019 contemporary romance by Hoover that sold over a million copies worldwide.

Hoover is a wildly popular American author who has become a publishing phenomenon, with her books selling over 30 million copies worldwide. She is known for penning complex, emotional stories about women, which has won her a massive social media following.

Regretting You isn't the novelist's most popular book, but it has developed a passionate, cult following over the years.

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The story explores the complex relationship between a mother and daughter following a sudden tragedy and a shocking betrayal.

The plot centres on Morgan (Allison Williams) and her sixteen-year-old daughter, Clara (Mckenna Grace), whose strained relationship is shattered when Morgan's husband, Chris (Scott Eastwood) and her sister, Jenny (Willa Fitzgerald), are killed in a car accident.

As the mother and daughter navigate their grief, Morgan reconnects with her first crush and Jenny's fiancé Jonah (Dave Franco), as the two uncover devastating secrets about the people they thought they knew. Oh, and along the way, Clara finds solace in starting a romance with the most popular guy in school, Miller (Mason Thames).

The film adaptation is directed by The Fault in Our Stars' Josh Boone from a screenplay by Susan McMartin and Boone, with Hoover acting as an executive producer.

The movie is the second movie adaptation released by Hoover, who also has popular novels, Verity and Reminders of Him, being turned into films.

Regretting You is one of three Hoover films to come. Image: Paramount Pictures.

Of course, the first book-to-screen adaptation was Hoover's most popular novel, It Ends With Us, which was turned into a 2024 film starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, who served as director.

It's now impossible to untangle the film itself from the lawsuits and drama that followed, with executive producer Lively and director Baldoni still in an ongoing legal dispute over allegations of sexual misconduct, a smear campaign and defamation.

To be clear, Regretting You feels like a very different movie to It Ends With Us. It's a much smaller budget — there's a lot less glitz and glam, with a modest wardrobe, set design and soundtrack.

It still definitely has Hoover's fingerprints on it — CoHo has a definitive aesthetic she's going for in her universe — but this is ultimately a simpler suburban drama that hinges on the chemistry between the leads.

Thankfully, there are a lot of vibes between the two young stars, Grace and Thames, who perfectly encapsulate the cuteness and chaos that surrounds first love.

Image: Paramount Pictures.

Their scenes are some of the more believable, and it's unsurprising that — while unconfirmed — the two young actors have been dodging dating rumours for months.

In the leading role of Morgan, Williams anchors this story while bringing authenticity and grit to this character. She had moments of chemistry with her scene partner, Franco, but he seemed a bit out of place in this role. Franco was far from bad, but I couldn't get past a sneaking suspicion that his scattered presence didn't reflect the Jonah we had been sold in the novel.

Despite its emotional material — showing the characters pass through the stages of grief — I never felt that this movie was just a story about death. I was aware that two characters had died, but because the film leaned so heavily on the ones who stay alive, and their unfinished love story, it minimised the emotional impact.

I'm not too sure what this movie was meant to be. Was it a drama? A romance? A comedy? A dramedy? A rom-com-ma?

Hoover has seemingly started a new genre of film, and I'd like to trademark 'traum-com' for the author — the result is a very specific viewing experience where the film looks and sounds like a rom-com, but the traumatic storyline lingering throughout adds another layer.

Did I still have a good time? Yes.

Like Boone's The Fault in Our Stars, there was still a lot to enjoy about this film, and it was refreshing to see grief captured in a way that felt still life-affirming and hopeful.

Feature image: Paramount Pictures.