RomCom Movie Tropes: Loved or

Melanie Ramirez, Writer | Febraury 6, 2026

Polaroid selfie of Julia Styles, Heath Ledger, Joseph Gorden Levitt, and Larisa Oleynik

February, the month of love, is always filled with affection of all kinds throughout the month. There are many traditions people like to partake in. Part of these traditions is enoying romantic movies.

Love them or hate them these movies often have tropes that play out the exact same way no matter who the director is. But where did these tropes come from? How do people feel about them and what does it say about the society that enables them?

“The cheater”. This trope usually includes one or both of the main leads being in a relationship and the whole movie involves the two emotionally or physically cheating because the two share a “real love”.

Often the main characters (MCs) are usually best friends since childhood. Despite the icky nature, this trope does create drama which is why it is often used. 

Originally it appeared in early cinema with movies such as The Kiss (1929) when the concept of leaving a previous lover for another was foreign and enticing. It created this sense of rebellion which is why it had become so popular.

Some students such as Darica Calbalda from the Academy of Medical Arts at Carson High School said, “No. Absolutely not.”

“It can be a story progression but only if it's not the main LI (love interest) doing it. Otherwise you can't expect us to like your characters if they're cheaters.” She went on to say in detail.

“Starting with a lie”. In love stories with this trope, the MCs start getting to know each other when one lies to the other.

This creates forced proximity, usually in the form of bets, hidden identities, and fake dating. A popular example of this trope can be seen in She’s All That (1999) where the male MC pretends to be interested in the nerdy girl after being dumped by his popular cheerleader girlfriend and losing popularity.

This trope is one of the lesser hated tropes as proof of positive review from Darica who thinks it's a good idea for a love story.

As opposed to the straight path of talking and dating, it creates a more complex storyline that's interesting to follow.

While some might not like the idea of having couples stay together when the relationship started with a lie, there is the argument that these couples should stay together as long as they're in love.

It seen in romantic misunderstandings in theater and literature, one of the first known pieces of this includes “The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest” or “El Burlador de Sevilla y Convidado de Piedra”.

The story follows Don Juan who uses disguises to exploit, seduce, and trick women which eventually leads to his downfall. The trope was used to bypass social restrictions, gain fortune, and initiate romantic pursuits. This often causes situational irony when the MCs fall in love while assuming they're immune.

“Enemies to lovers”. In this trope the MCs start out by hating each other but they slowly start falling in love as they get forced to be in proximity with each other.

This one is a more realistic version of the “love at first sight” trope often seen in more fantastical romcoms. In these kinds of movies the trope is used to create immediate tension, create a slow burn and allows room for character development.

Most famously this trope has been used in Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice where MCs Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy initially hate each other but slowly fall in love over the course of the book after many dramatic events.

It really solidified in the 1990s and 2000s with the iconic 10 Things I Hate About You with Kat Stratfored played by Julia Stiles and Patrick Verona played by Heath Ledger. As well as in You’ve got mail.

Though a lot of the time in these movies the couple usually goes through an enemies phase and then straight to dating. Often causing the realistic element to be diminished.

However there is potential for this trope. “I think it can be done effectively as long as it's paced and they did nothing horrendous to each other in the enemies phase.” Darica went on to say.

When it comes to writing for this trope a lot of people can say that it's important that the MCs have a friend phase in which they stop being enemies at one point in the story and ease into falling for each other.

Now, despite the repetition these tropes create, people will still sit back and watch because at the end of the day, it is just entertainment and it can be fun to watch them play out regardless of your preferences.