Exclusive Interview
‘The Love Hypothesis’ Director Talks Adapting Fan-Favorite Chapter 16, Spice & All
What To Know
- The Love Hypothesis director Claire Scanlon talked about adapting Chapter 16 during an interview with Swooon.
- Scanlon emphasized the challenge of translating a lengthy, dialogue-heavy book scene into a cinematic moment.
- The film debuts on September 25.
When we asked The Love Hypothesis director Claire Scanlon which scene she knew she needed to make sure would live up to fans’ expectations, her answer was simple: Chapter 16.
For readers of The Love Hypothesis, Chapter 16 is one of the most highly anticipated scenes in the movie. However, for anyone going into the upcoming rom-com without reading Ali Hazelwood‘s novel first, the chapter number alone is an incredibly vague teaser. Don’t worry, we’ll give you a hint: It’s the reason the movie is rated R.
The Love Hypothesis follows Olive Smith (Lili Reinhart), a Stanford PhD student who finds herself entangled with her department’s most hated professor, Dr. Adam Carlsen (Tom Bateman), after a poorly planned kiss. If you love fake dating and real chemistry (beakers and all), this romance is sure to sweep you off your feet. Without giving too much away, Chapter 16 marks the moment these two go from fake kissing to something real, and drastically spicier.
Prime Video
When Scanlon sat down with Swooon, she let us in on the pressure she’s felt from fans to get Olive and Adam’s steamy moment right while staying true to the film medium. “The pressure on that — I mean, you just go on any TikTok, and people are going berserk,” she laughed.
However, while she was determined to lean into fans’ expectations, Scanlon made it clear that a movie scene is never going to look exactly like it did on the page, especially when the book scene lasted over a chapter. “I’m never gonna get what someone’s imagination is,” the director explained. “There’s no way to do that. So, you just have to kind of pray you’re doing it right. I really wanted to honor it, but it also can’t be as long. It’s more than just Chapter 16. It’s a chapter and a half.”
So, what could Scanlon cut down from the beloved scene? “There’s a lot of talking, and you can’t do that in a film,” Scanlon revealed. “You have to have action, but there’s only so much action you want to see before it starts turning into a different kind of film altogether.” When it came down to it, Scanlon hypothesized that “finding and striking that balance” would make this the most difficult, yet rewarding scene to direct.
According to Scanlon, her Chapter 16 experiment was a smashing success. “We did a preview, and we made sure to get a lot of book fans in. I think 40% of the people at the preview were fans of the book because I wanted them to be harsh.” After hearing their feedback, it’s safe to say there was no false positive here!
The Love Hypothesis, September 23, Prime Video
