The Love Hypothesis has arrived on Prime Video, and the premise is as literal as its title suggests. Lili Reinhart plays Olive Smith, a Ph.D candidate at Stanford University, while Tom Bateman plays Dr. Adam Carlsen, a professor there. Their experiment involves fake dating each other, a ruse meant to convince Olive’s best friend that she has moved on from her crush and to help Adam convince his colleagues that he has a reason to stay at Stanford rather than take a job at Harvard.
The film adapts Ali Hazelwood’s 2021 bestseller, and DECIDER contributor Maddy Casale recommended streaming it, calling it “a charmingly cheesy tale complete with classic tropes like found family and fake dating.” Olive’s scheme begins when she discovers that her best friend Anh has feelings for her crush, Jeremy — feelings that are mutual. Olive plants a kiss on the first man she sees in front of Anh to convince her she’s in a relationship. That man turns out to be Dr. Adam Carlsen.
Olive Smith and Dr. Adam Carlsen
Reinhart plays Olive, a Ph.D candidate whose scheme goes badly wrong when she kisses the wrong person. She is also an executive producer on the project. Her most famous role remains Betty Cooper in Riverdale, though she has also starred alongside Cooper Raiff in the series Hal & Harper.
Bateman plays Dr. Carlsen, a professor known to his students as “Dr. Evil” for his tough, cold demeanor. He agrees to the fake dating arrangement to secure his position at Stanford against a Harvard offer. Fans of fellow actor Tom Ellis might spot a resemblance between the two. Bateman’s film credits include Much Ado About Nothing, Snatched, Death on the Nile, Thirteen Lives, and Hedda.
Anh Pham and Jeremy Langley
Rachel Marsh plays Anh Pham, Olive’s confident and compassionate best friend. Anh supports Olive through the whole ordeal, even when she and Jeremy confess their feelings for each other. Marsh is known to fans of Adults as Carly, and her other TV credits include Unstable, The Morning Show, and Fallout. She can be followed on Instagram at @rachel_marsh.
Nicholas Duvernay plays Jeremy Langley, the Ph.D candidate who catches Olive’s eye. He is interested in Anh, which puts him directly in conflict with Olive’s plan. Duvernay recently starred in Hulu’s Not Suitable for Work, which was canceled after its debut season. He also appeared in Bel-Air and Reminders of Him. He can be followed at @nicholasduvernay.
Malcolm Browne and Dr. Thomas Benton
Jaboukie Young-White plays Malcolm Browne, Olive’s friend and roommate. Malcolm studies under Dr. Carlsen and is not a fan of him. Young-White is a comedian and actor who recently appeared in the movie Trash Mountain, set to hit theaters in October. His other credits include BoJack Horseman, Fairfax, Only Murders in the Building, and Abbott Elementary. He can be followed at @jaboukie.
Arty Froushan plays Dr. Thomas Benton, a Harvard professor whose lab Olive applies to work in. He also went to grad school with Dr. Carlsen. Recent credits include Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale and Daredevil: Born Again. He can be followed on Instagram at @artyfroushan.
What the Review Said
Casale’s recommendation is light on praise but warm on charm. She described the film as “a decently entertaining and pleasant final product,” noting that it leans heavily on classic romance tropes. The fake dating setup is central to the premise, and the results are more complicated than Olive and Adam expect.
The Love Hypothesis is a small-screen adaptation of a bestselling romance novel. Chemistry is central to the experiment.
The Fake Dating Premise
The setup is pure irony. Olive wants to prove she is over Jeremy, so she plants a kiss on Adam. Adam wants to prove he belongs at Stanford, so he agrees to pretend to be in a relationship. Neither of them expects the chemistry to complicate things the way it does.
The film takes a simple premise and runs with it, layering in the usual romantic comedy tropes about found family and fake dating. Casale’s review suggests the execution lands somewhere between charming and cheesy, but still pleasant enough to recommend.
| Role | Actor | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Olive Smith | Lili Reinhart | Riverdale, Hal & Harper |
| Dr. Adam Carlsen | Tom Bateman | Much Ado About Nothing, Hedda |
| Anh Pham | Rachel Marsh | Adults, The Morning Show |
| Jeremy Langley | Nicholas Duvernay | Bel-Air, Reminders of Him |
| Malcolm Browne | Jaboukie Young-White | BoJack Horseman, Abbott Elementary |
| Dr. Thomas Benton | Arty Froushan | Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale |
The Love Hypothesis is a prime example of the romance genre doing what it does best: setting up a simple rule and watching it break.
Source material: “‘The Love Hypothesis’ Cast Guide: Who’s Who in the New Prime Video Romance?,” Decider.
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