Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Book-based romcom has sex, swearing, and partying.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
The Love Hypothesis
What's the Story?
Olive (Lili Reinhart) is a promising Stanford doctoral student whose "found family" consists of her best friend and fellow student Ahn (Rachel Marsh) in THE LOVE HYPOTHESIS. When Olive realizes that Ahn is holding back from exploring a potential love interest with classmate Jeremy (Nicholas Duvernay) because she believes Olive might also like him, Olive pretends she's in a relationship with Professor Adam Carlsen (Tom Bateman). Adam and Olive realize there are other benefits to their fake coupling, so they continue the act. Soon, though, they become unsure of what's an act and what's becoming more real.
Is It Any Good?
The fake-couple-falling-in-love theme has been done repeatedly, but this campus-set romance contains just enough original elements to overcome the predictability. Sure, you know how The Love Hypothesis is going to end, but the ride there is still a fun one. Highs include the Stanford setting, energetic besties (Marsh is a standout), and the initial awkwardness between PhD candidate and despised professor, played with good humor by Reinhart and Bateman. Lows include less deft touches with the score and feminist posturing at the film's start (unnecessary since the story contains those messages on its own).
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the discrimination and intimidation the women experience in their science field in The Love Hypothesis. Does this seem realistic? Do you have or have you heard about any similar experiences?
How was Olive portrayed? Was she a positive character? Why, or why not? Why is it important to see nuanced representations of women on screen?
Have you read the book this film is based on? How does it differ? What can books do better than films, and vice versa?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : September 23, 2026
- Cast : Lili Reinhart , Tom Bateman , Rachel Marsh
- Director : Claire Scanlon
- Studio : Amazon Prime Video
- Genre : Romance
- Topics : Friendship , School ( College & Graduate School ) , Book Characters
- Run time : 110 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : language and some sexual content/nudity
- Last updated : September 22, 2026
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