Now, I had heard rumblings about a rom-com on the 2026 movie schedule that was like if you took the premise of The Purge movies, added in romance, and took away the murder. Initially, I was conflicted by this because of how wild it sounds. However, now I’ve seen the trailer for Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro’s One Night Only, and I gotta say, I’m totally sold.
So, I know what you might be thinking: “Why would you use a great horror franchise to describe a rom-com?” Trust me, I wondered that too. However, it actually makes so much sense, so let me break it down. Instead of one day where crime (including murder) is legal, in One Night Only, there’s only one day of the year where “single people are legally allowed to have sex.” See what I’m saying, it’s like The Purge, but instead of everyone doing crimes, every single person is trying to get laid.
With that foundation set, this movie follows Owen and Allie, who are played by Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro, respectively, on this day. They don’t know each other, they meet on this day, and it seems like they do not get along. The trailer shows the two bantering, making fun of each other, and throwing insults back and forth, like:
- Allie: Your ears look like car doors.
- Owen: Well, your nose is way too small for your face.
- Allie: Your chin could plow a field.
- Owen: Your legs don’t make any sense.
- Allie: Your hairline doesn’t make any sense.
So, at first, it seems like they won’t be fit to share this one night together.
However, as the trailer depicts, it seems like they get up to a lot of trouble over the course of the evening (why do they end up at a hospital?), and as this day winds down, maybe they realize they do have feelings for one another. But will they act on them with enough time to legally do so? I guess the film will answer that question, and I can’t wait to see it.
Along with the premise immediately pulling me into this movie, the stars got me too. I adored Callum Turner’s Eternity (a rom-com you can stream with an Apple TV subscription), and Monica Barbaro has been a favorite of mine since Top Gun: Maverick (check that one out with a Paramount+ subscription). So, I’m thrilled to see them both leading a movie. The fact that they’re leading a rom-com together AND they have palpable chemistry just makes all this even better.
On top of the actors and the premise being major selling points, One Night Only comes from Will Gluck, who directed both Easy A and Anyone But You. When I think about that iconic Emma Stone movie and the creative Shakespeare-inspired project starring Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney, the first thing that comes to mind is the creativity of both films. They each have unique premieres, but also play into tropes we know and love. It seems like One Night Only will do the exact same thing with its wild Purge-like premise.
You can catch The Purge, but make it a rom-com…I mean One Night Only, in theaters on August 7.
