TikTok has apparently stepped in to rescue romantic comedies, preventing them from languishing in the depths of streaming oblivion. Who knew a platform known for 15-second dance challenges would also revive the genre of love-struck protagonists and awkward meet-cutes?
Enter Sony’s *Anyone But You*, a cinematic reimagining of Shakespeare’s *Much Ado About Nothing*. The film has struck box office gold, forecasted to rake in $85 to $100 million in the U.S. on a modest $25 million budget. This success is all the more bewildering given the film’s lukewarm reviews and its modest B+ CinemaScore. Hollywood executives typically at each other’s throats are now singing its praises like groupies at a boy band concert.
After kicking off with a meek $8 million over Christmas, this rom-com starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell went viral—no small feat for a genre some thought had retired to the hall of streaming shame. Moviegoers inundated TikTok with their own reenactments of the film’s closing credits, which features our two leads dancing to Natasha Bedingfield’s 2004 classic “Unwritten.” If you’ve ever wanted to see an entire movie audience perform coordinated arm-waving, now’s your chance!
In its second weekend, *Anyone But You* experienced a miraculous 45.6% jump at the box office—only the third wide release ever to do so—right behind *The Greatest Showman* and *Cheaper by the Dozen*. And, drumroll please, it became the first Christmas release to actually earn more in its third weekend ($9.8 million) than in its opening—a feat once thought impossible when discussing anything other than successful franchises or explosions.
This phenomenon throws a wrench in the long-held belief that rom-coms were now strictly a streaming affair, suited to lonely nights on the couch. One studio exec quipped, “Finally, a genre that belongs on the big screen, where it can be appreciated by an audience.” Of course, they’re clearly referencing kids aged 18 to 24 who were busy on TikTok rather than waiting for their dad’s VHS collection of *When Harry Met Sally*.
Director Will Gluck weighs in, remarking that Shakespeare gave us communal viewing 400 years ago. “Sharing rom-coms is vital,” he insists, as if we’ve been neglecting to gather en masse with popcorn and laughter, rather than binge-watching life choices alone in our pajamas.
TikTok has become the golden child of movie marketing, granting phenomenon-status to films with the grace of an algorithmic god. Spiraling into virality faster than you can say “algorithm,” the platform has transformed traditional marketing strategies into humorous and often absurd spectacles. Case in point: a video of Miles Teller dancing became fodder for TikTok glory, effectively drawing non-traditional audiences to *Top Gun: Maverick*—a feat that might as well entitle it to the title of honorary rom-com.
As for *Anyone But You*, Sony has mastered the art of TikTok stunts, using everything from sweet nothings whispered between its charming leads to viral video requests urging viewers to recreate its iconic credits. With TikTok subscribers swarming to share their own versions, the film’s hashtag has surpassed 1.2 billion views. And yes, the accompanying tune “Unwritten” has waltzed its way onto Spotify’s U.S. top 200 chart—proof that social media can resurrect not just films but songs from the early 2000s that we thought we had collectively forgotten!
