Hollywood is head-over-heels for a good rom-com, a trope that has been in constant rotation in cinema since the silent age. Many times these films drill in the utmost importance of falling in love and finding “the one,” and while these flicks can inspire comfort and real yearning, sometimes it’s nice to zig instead of zag. A “happy ending” does not necessarily correlate with being in a relationship, which is why it’s refreshing when films embrace singleness and all it has to offer.
Updated April 25, 2023: If you're a fan of feel-good, single-embracing films, then you'll be happy to know this article has been updated with additional content by Yosra Ben Lagha.
Single readers out there know that it is absolutely possible to feel both happy and fulfilled while living an independent life. The silver screen has gradually moved away from outdated concepts concerning marriage and children as the only keys to wholeness and has slowly delved into depictions of real, content, and satisfied characters who just so happen to be riding solo. Let’s take a look at some of the greatest movies that embrace being single.
14 How to Be Single
The direct and aptly named 2016 rom-com How to Be Single is based on the novel by Liz Tuccillo and follows a group of young women in New York City and their different approaches to being single. With a diverse and talented cast including Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Damon Wayans Jr. and Jason Mantzoukas, the film brings the funny and reaffirms that it’s okay to be single.
How to Be Single centers on Alice (Johnson) as she navigates — well, being single — after breaking up with her long-term boyfriend. Wilson dazzles as her best friend Robin, who unapologetically embraces all that single life has to offer. Not only does the film take viewers on a journey of self-discovery, but it also highlights the power and importance of friendship.
13 Under the Tuscan Sun
The 2003 rom-com drama Under the Tuscan Sun follows a recently divorced writer who impulsively buys a villa in Tuscany, hoping that it will change her life for the better. Based on the Frances Mayes memoir, Diane Lane stars as the author who embarks on an Italian adventure in search of a fresh start after being cheated on by her husband.
When she purchases a charming yet rundown villa, her outlook on life begins to shift, and she once again finds purpose and meaning as she fixes it up. Frances embraces her new independence and meets an assortment of quirky yet kind characters that touch her soul.
12 Wild
Reese Witherspoon earned an Oscar nomination when she starred in the critically-acclaimed 2014 biographical drama Wild, in which she portrays a woman on a quest for self-enlightenment who embarks on a 1,100-mile solo hike on the Pacific Crest Trail in light of a crippling personal tragedy.
After her mother passes away from cancer, and grief completely destroys her marriage, Cheryl Strayed decides to figure out what she wants in life and the kind of person she wants to be moving forward. She reflects on the collapse of her relationship with her husband and the heartbreaking loss of her mother while finding new confidence in herself as she stands on her own two feet on a wondrous solo journey.
11 Baby Mama
Beloved Saturday Night Live alumni Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are a comedy dream team in the 2008 comedy Baby Mama. Fey stars as a successful and single businesswoman whose dreams of having a child are dashed when she discovers she’s infertile, so she hires a woman to be her surrogate.
Poehler co-stars as an overbearing and immature woman who initially lies about being pregnant in order to score a payout, but in doing so develops a close bond with Fey’s character and gets cold feet. Baby Mama is a hilarious movie that reminds audiences they don’t have to be in a romantic relationship to have a family, and it demonstrates that single, powerhouse women can have it all too.
10 The First Wives Club
The iconic, single-girl-empowering movie The First Wives Club stars Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler, and Diane Keaton as three divorcees who seek revenge on their husbands who left them for younger women. Based on the 1992 Elizabeth Goldsmith novel of the same name, the comedy at its core is an ode to friendship as the ladies band together to not only exact retribution but also have fun embracing single life and their newfound independence.
The First Wives Club was a surprise box office hit and developed a cult-like following, primarily among middle-aged women. The New York Timespraised the female-driven film, saying, “Bette Midler, Diane Keaton, and Goldie Hawn make a spirited, surprisingly harmonious trio.”
9 Legally Blonde
When sorority girl Elle Woods gets dumped by her Ivy League boyfriend, she sets off to win him back by earning a degree at Harvard Law School and along the way discovers that there’s so much more to her than just looks and being blonde. The iconic 2001 comedy Legally Blonde is sometimes considered to be the epitome of girl power in the movies, and encourages viewers to live their most authentic single life, reminding them that they don’t need a man to be complete.
Reese Witherspoon is magnetic as Elle, an unstoppable force who overcomes countless stereotypes as she finds her voice and self-confidence. CNN perfectly summed up the theme of the film, proclaiming it as a “sassy satire that retains a message: believe in yourself and follow your dreams.”
8 John Tucker Must Die
The hilarious 2006 revenge teen comedy John Tucker Must Die tells the entertaining story of a trio of scorned high school girls who devise a scheme to give their mutual cheating ex a taste of his own medicine and break his heart. The amusing, girl power film chronicles the efforts of the teenagers as they put the titular, John Tucker, through the wringer, enlisting the help of a shy, new girl to help get even with the serial cheater.
On their crusade to make their ex-pay, the diverse group of ladies connects and develops a tight bond and friendship despite the unusual way in which they were brought together. Though they began their journey together seeking vengeance, the girls realize they are better without John Tucker and walk away with a deep friendship.
7 Someone Great
The Netflix romantic comedy Someone Great follows an NYC music journalist who is left devastated after being broken up with on the eve of her big cross-country move. She decides to enjoy all that the city has to offer in a final hurrah, along with her two best friends. The heart-warming film stars Gina Rodriguez, Brittany Snow, and DeWanda Wise as the trio who whoop it up one last time, deepening their everlasting bond along the way.
Someone Great tackles heavy topics such as grief, love, and the unyielding power of friendship while inspiring viewers that there’s light at the end of the breakup tunnel.
6 Eat Pray Love
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Arguably the most famous film about being single, the 2010 biographical romantic drama Eat Pray Love focuses on a married woman who realizes how unfulfilling her marriage is, and decides her life needs to go in a completely different direction. After a difficult divorce, she leaves her troubles behind her and takes off to explore the world on her own.
Julia Roberts stars as Elizabeth “Liz” Gilbert, a woman on a journey of self-discovery who yearns to find the meaning of life and, to do so, immerses herself in diverse cultures. Eat Pray Love is inspirational, compelling, and ultimately delivers the message of the importance of self-love and inner peace.
5 Wedding Crashers
The 2005 raunchy comedy farce Wedding Crashers is truly the ultimate film for embracing the possible wildness of single life and all the perks it has to offer. Dynamic duo Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn star as John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey, a pair of intensely committed womanizers who make it their lives' mission to sneak into weddings in an attempt to meet and ultimately seduce women.
Wedding Crashers glorifies the allure of being single and epically highlights the freedoms and benefits that can come with it. Though romance and love naturally blossom in the film, at its core it’s a celebration of male friendship. The Los Angeles Timespoignantly concluded the movie is “really just a love story about a couple of buddies who live happily ever after. And it couldn’t have happened to a nicer, more charming couple.”
4 The Other Woman
Nick Cassavetes’ 2014 comedy The Other Woman centers on three very different women who discover they are all romantically involved with the same man. After learning about each other, the trio sets out to execute their revenge. The star-studded cast features Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, Kate Upton, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and the film was a box-office success.
Full of big laughs and diabolical schemes, The Other Woman starts out being a tale of revenge but along the way the characters bond and form a powerful kinship. It’s a women’s empowerment comedy that takes the leading ladies on an adventure of self-growth and confidence while serving laughs along the way.
3 Obvious Child
2014 romantic dramedy Obvious Child follows stand-up comedian Donna (SNL's Jenny Slate), whose unplanned pregnancy forces her to address the realities of independent womanhood. After being cheated on by her boyfriend, Donna has a one-night stand in an attempt to move on and ends up getting pregnant. Obvious Child delves into heavy subjects like unplanned pregnancy and abortion, as Donna is faced with the uncomfortable truth of her life and situation.
The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews, with Slate being praised for her honest and real depiction of a conflicted woman’s painful and personal decision.
2 Bad Teacher
The 2011 American comedy film, Bad Teacher, is directed by Jake Kasdan and stars the heartwarming and incredibly talented Cameron Diaz. The movie is not just an opportunity to unburden oneself through laughing over the hilarious plot and dialogue that the movie so generously offers, but it's also an opportunity to learn how to be single and rely on oneself for reaching happiness.
The movie follows the story of Elizabeth Halsey, a self-aware and proud gold digger who plots to marry her fiancé in order to live off his wealth. Unluckily for her, he discovers her true agenda and breaks off the engagement. Elizabeth, then, goes back to her previous job as a middle school teacher, this time completely single and broke. In fact, she left work with a very prideful attitude, gloating over her new rich life, which made coming back even more humbling than it needed to be. Her colleagues gave her a hard time over being single and returning to square one after being so close to getting married and having the life of her dreams.
The movie tells the story of a woman who is forced into being single and struggles to grapple with her new life. She undergoes a huge character transformation that would only be possible if she were completely alone and undisturbed by any romantic partners. In fact, although she resisted the course the events were taking and tried to seduce her new wealthy colleague by getting breast implants and resorting to other extreme and unreasonable measures, he was interested in someone else. Being single for a while forced Elizabeth to reconsider everything, including her dependent nature and how to fix it.
For most of the movie, she hated nothing more than being a teacher. However, eventually, she managed to connect with her students and help them resolve some of their personal issues. In doing so, she discovered that her real talent lies in counseling and became the school's counselor. The movie is an utter inspiration, especially, for people who are forced into being single. It proposes a new perspective that makes being alone an opportunity to grow in character, personality, and vision and to transform into a better version of yourself. It's simply a movie that proves that happy endings are not just for romantic movies. Finding oneself and breaking a toxic cycle is also a happy ending.
1 The Lobster
If you want to see the theme of being single in a fresh, unique, and new way, all you need to do is take a look at this 2015 dark comedy, The Lobster, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and stars Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz. It tackles the lives of single people living in a dystopian future in which being single results in catastrophic consequences, like turning into an animal. The protagonist David enrolls in a program to fix his lonely life. He is taken to a hotel, where he tries to find a partner under the supervision of a director and a dedicated staff.
The rules of the program are simple, if he can't find the perfect partner in 45 days, he gets to choose the animal he will turn into. This extreme touch is there to emphasize the dysfunctional focus that society puts on the institution of marriage and romantic relationships in general. The whole movie is a metaphor that explains how society stops looking at single people as human beings (but as animals) if they fail to land a stable and socially acceptable relationship. It is a movie about self-acceptance, regardless of outside pressure and prejudice.