When it comes to romantic comedies, the genre has grown into an oversaturated category with numerous networks and streaming platforms banking on the formula for some syrupy goodness. But while few today have lived up to the standard built by the greats like Nora Ephron in the late ’80s and early ’90s, Amazon Prime Video’s newest offering I Want You Back is one that plays to the old-school charm but stands out on its own and sits most comfortably as a new favorite.
Releasing just before Valentine’s Day on Feb. 11 exclusively via Amazon Prime Video, I Want You Back stars Scott Eastwood and Clark Backo admit to PopCulture.com in an exclusive interview that the film captures the best of the rom-com genre thanks to a rare relatability that allows it to stand out on its own. “It’s the writing. It’s Jason Orley, our director. It’s the cast. It’s the time,” Backo said of the film’s charm and appeal. “I think everyone’s just been so ready, but Elizabeth [Berger] and Isaac [Aptaker] just knew how to take the best of what we love from the old school rom coms from the ’90s and early 2000s, and then just infuse it with social media, everything that is relevant to today and so, I just think they did the best of both worlds and just created a sick new rom-com.”
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Directed by Orley of Big Time Adolescence and written by This Is Us producers Berger and Aptaker, I Want You Back follows two total strangers Emma (Jenny Slate) and Peter (Charlie Day) bonding after unexpectedly getting dumped by their partners played by Eastwood and Gina Rodriguez, respectively. Worried they’ve lost their shot at a happily ever after and horrified to start over, the broken-hearted pair plot to win their exes back with each other’s help, no matter the cost.
Sharing how the film was “so much fun,” the 31-year-old adds the cast’s scenes together felt a lot more like “shenanigans than filmmaking,” though the Toronto native reveals that’s the “best way” to have chemistry. “Where you barely even realize there’s a camera, and it’s all, it was just playtime,” she said of the experience. “That’s what it felt like to me.”
With the Amazon Studios film also being Eastwood’s first romantic comedy, the 35-year-old admits the “incredible” experience has piqued his interest in doing more. “I will say about doing any sort of comedy, it’s a different experience than making an action movie. It’s a different experience,” he said. “It’s very fun and light, and it really is a great breakup than doing a movie that’s a lot more heavy in nature. So, like, you said, it’s just, we were out there having fun every day. So, you’re just full of smiles.”
I Want You Backย releases Feb. 11 on Amazon Prime Video. For more with Scott Eastwood, Clark Backo, Jenny Slate, Charlie Day and the cast ofย I Want You Back, stick to the latest from PopCulture.com.
