A match made in hell: Hollywood producing Tinder-oriented rom-com

By Saqib Shah July 19, 2016

tinder on android — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Hollywood wants to go beyond fake Tinder profiles to create a stronger bond between itself and the dating app. The technophobic film industry is finally jumping on the digital matchmaking bandwagon with a rom-com that revolves around Tinder — hell, it even has Tinder in the title, in case you weren’t sure what it’s about.

Warner Bros. has nabbed the rights to The Worst Tinder Date Ever, an original romantic comedy (yes, they still make those) from writers Keith Merryman and David A. Newman. The duo behind the project are also responsible for the Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis snore-fest that was Friends with Benefits, and the Think Like a Man franchise.

The Tinder-centric film will involve two people — both, we’re guessing, straight and white, and certainly over the age of 18 (since younger teens are no longer allowed to use the app), who meet via the matchmaking service and go on a date. Set in L.A., the film will involve rom-com and action elements, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

It ultimately sounds like Date Night for millennials — the demographic Hollywood wishes would put down their damn smartphones and go to the movies. A fly on the wall during the board meeting where this dreamed up might have witnessed someone draw an allusion to Nora Ephron’s ode to email (and Starbucks) You’ve Got Mail, which has actually aged pretty well. Unfortunately, it sounds more like My Dinner with Andre, if you replaced the humanism with an algorithm, and the improvisation with choreographed action set-pieces. Or maybe just a dog’s dinner.

Perhaps we’re being a tad bit harsh. After all, there have been some films that have bucked the technophobic trend of Hollywood movies. Recent examples include Spike Jonze’s Her, and Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs. And many problems can be solved or forgiven with a likeable cast. All the project needs is a sprinkling of Michael B. Jordan and Emma Stone in order to win many of us over.

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Saqib Shah is a Twitter addict and film fan with an obsessive interest in pop culture trends. In his spare time he can be…

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