Although the theatrically released rom-com (or dramedy) assuredly remains an endangered species, there are always some indie filmmakers on the fringes working to keep the genre alive–we’re only a couple of weeks removed, after all, from the A24 release of Celine Song’s generally well-received Materialists. And having seemingly become the go-to presence for this particular romantic sector–the Reese Witherspoon of her day, if you will–it probably should be no surprise to immediately see a first trailer for another upcoming rom-com in a similar mold that also features Materialists star Dakota Johnson. In the period since the flop of Madame Web, it feels like the prominent nepo baby starlet has retrenched in this sort of down-to-earth romantic territory, and the box office results have been playing along. The new flick is director Michael Angelo Covino’s Splitsville, having debuted somewhat under the radar (but to decent reviews) at Cannes in May.
Splitsville is the sophomore film of Covino, a follow-up to 2019’s The Climb, which like this film also starred Covino as an actor alongside Kyle Marvin. Here, the writing team has pulled a doozy, casting themselves as married to Dakota Johnson and Adria Arjona, respectively: Talk about a piece of writerly wish fulfillment. The eye-rolling this casting is no doubt primed to inspire is tamed to some degree by the fact that the trailer makes it clear that the men have effectively written themselves as the fools of this particular storyline, friends caught between their more assured female counterparts. Or as the official synopsis puts it:
After Ashley (Adria Arjona) asks for a divorce, good-natured Carey (Kyle Marvin) runs to his friends, Julie (Dakota Johnson) and Paul (Michael Angelo Covino), for support. He’s shocked to discover that the secret to their happiness is an open marriage, that is until Carey crosses the line and throws all of their relationships into chaos.
Suffice to say, Covino’s Paul doesn’t react well when Carey casually mentions that he hooked up with his wife–perhaps that “open relationship” sounded a bit better on paper than it did in practice? The Splitsville trailer below promises a truly combustible situation in response–not many romantic comedy trailers involve flipping cars, aerosol flamethrowers, destroyed fish tanks and guys tackling each other through windows. After all the well-behaved pining of the likes of Materialists, perhaps this kind of venom and rancor is just the balance that the genre needs. Regardless, Splitsville will hit U.S. theaters via Neon on Aug. 22, 2025. Check out the trailer below.
