Info in Movie News | A24 is kicking off 2026 with a tense character driven movie that looks beyond the picture perfect idea of pre wedding bliss. The Drama is a romance thriller to the point where it is a dramatic dive into the break-up of Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's relationship. They are a portrayal of a couple who from outside look like they are stable but in fact, they are quietly falling apart. Director Kristoffer Borgli uses the characters' awkwardness, emotional turmoil, and grim humor to depict a reality that is not only uncomfortably familiar but also very sharply tuned in to the characters' surroundings.
According to Deadline, the movie is about Emma Harwood, a character of Zendaya, and Charlie Thompson, a character of Robert Pattinson. The two are making plans for their wedding, however it is a hectic and stormy week rather than a peaceful one and the joy melts very fast into a series of tense and exposing moments. The first scene of the video features the two in a photography studio where they are visibly awkward and uncomfortable while a happy photographer is making an effort to get "natural smiles" from them. On being asked what they liked the most about each other, the words initially being sweet, but the montage that goes on reveals that they have something heavier in store beneath their answers.
Charlie refers to Emma as beautiful, funny, and full of life and in return Emma says Charlie is caring, understanding, and open minded. But the pictures contradict the friendliness of their statements. There is a rapid sequence that shows Charlie angrily throwing a chair, an alarm sounding in a dark corridor, Emma gulping down a drink in a desperate manner, and a brief moment of affection that quickly changes to a fight. These pieces make the audience feel that the lovers are attempting to keep the hold of a falsely perfect version of their relationship which, at the same time, they are splitting.
Borgli, the director of Dream Scenario and Sick of Myself, is coming back with his typical mixture of a slightly unsettling reality, social satire, and a kind of humor that affects you deeply for a long time but stays with you for just a little while. This time, A24 elevates the world building through a playful marketing approach. One promotional piece is designed like a Boston Globe wedding announcement, outlining Emma and Charlie’s backgrounds as if they were real people. Emma is described as a Boston University graduate and the daughter of a decorated Louisiana veteran. The character Charlie is initially described as someone who has a Ph.D in art history from Tufts University and is the director of the Cambridge Arts Museum. These facts serve to give more depth to the characters and make the viewers curious about their lives prior to the movie that is not shown.
The ensemble characters deepen the feeling world with the presence of characters played by Mamoudou Athie, Alana Haim, and Hailey Gates. Athie appears in the trailer giving a wedding toast, a moment that should feel celebratory but instead reads like another reminder that peace is slipping away from Emma and Charlie. Every shot seems to suggest that behind the polished image of a soon to be married couple lies a relationship full of secrets, doubts, and unspoken fears.
Interestingly, The Drama is just the start of Zendaya and Pattinson’s busy year together. In 2026, the pair will co star in three major movies. After this April release, they will reunite in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, hitting theaters July 17, with Zendaya portraying Athena and Pattinson playing the antagonistic suitor Antinous. After that, they revive the same characters in Dune: Part Three, which is going to be released next year. Zendaya will be Chani, and it's rumored that Pattinson will be Scytale, however, his role has not been confirmed yet.
The question about their cross-genre chemistry being most disproven by these artists working across genres different from their usual envies could not have been raised. Zendaya is immensely successful with her roles in Challengers and the upcoming Euphoria Season 3, and Pattinson is mixing prestige projects with big-budget movies after Die My Love, The Batman, and Tenet. The Drama, through its close up emotional tension and grounded storytelling, acts as a quieter, more intimate release of their acting powers.
At its core, the movie follows the emotional journey of a love couple going their separate ways, and how the issues of the characters' expectations, fear, and even unrecognized truths weighing among them can become very heavy at the most important moments of life. A24's one of the boldest and highly anticipated early 2026 releases, 'The Drama' is, as per the trailer, going to premiere soon. Mostly it is implied by the trailer that this movie will be a challenge for the audiences to think about the nature of love when it no longer is like a fairy tale.
The drama is coming to the big screen on April 3, 2026.
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