The Threesome (2025) Vertical/Comedy-Drama RT: 112 minutes Rated R (sexual material, language, brief drug use) Director: Chad Hartigan Screenplay: Ethan Ogilby Music: Keegan DeWitt Cinematography: Sing Howe Yam Release date: September 5, 2025 (US) Cast: Zoey Deutch, Jonah Hauer-King, Ruby Cruz, Jaboukie Young-White, Josh Segarra, Robert Longstreet, Arden Myrin, Kristin Slaysman, Allan McLeod, Julia Sweeney.
Rating: ** ½
WARNING: The titular threesome in the rom-com The Threesome is NOT shown. It happens off-camera. Anybody looking for cheap thrills is advised to look elsewhere. Might I suggest Pornhub?
I have mixed feelings about The Threesome, a rom-com without a lot of com. On the one hand, it tells an interesting story with great comic possibilities (I’ll talk more about that momentarily). On the other hand, I found it difficult to get past my dislike of a central character, a commitment-phobe who plays mind games with a guy who really cares about her. I kept thinking he should just walk away and get with somebody else. I know it’s not that easy, but it feels like the most logical move to an outsider. In any event, it had me feeling frustrated with the guy for the whole movie. It’s not a good feeling in the context of rom-com.
The basic premise of The Threesome is as follows: a single guy finds himself in a real pickle after he knocks up the two girls he had a threesome with. It’s rife with great comic possibilities, but it’s not an original idea, not exactly. It reminds me of the Blake Edwards comedy Micki and Maude (1984) starring Dudley Moore as an unhappily married man who gets his wife and mistress pregnant at the same time. He does the dishonorable thing and marries the mistress making him a bigamist. Neither woman knows about the other meaning Moore runs wild trying to live a double life. The Threesome doesn’t follow this trajectory. It’s a little more grounded than that. Director Chad Hartigan (Little Fish) chooses realism (relatively speaking) over slapstick madness. It’s an interesting approach.
Connor (King, I Know What You Did Last Summer) has a thing for Olivia (Deutch, Zombieland: Double Tap). She doesn’t reciprocate his feelings. She keeps brushing him off with sardonic remarks and such. Their mutual friend Greg (White, Companion) encourages him to chat up a young woman, Jenny (Cruz, Bottoms), sitting by herself at a table in the bar/restaurant where he works. They get on nicely, but seeing them together gets Olivia jealous. She inserts herself into their conversation which ultimately yields unexpected results.
The three go back to Connor’s place where a game or truth or dare turns into a threesome. The next morning, Jenny goes on her way after one more tryst with Connor in the shower. He tracks down Olivia who left before he woke up. He convinces her to take a chance at a relationship with him, a real relationship. Some weeks later, she learns she’s pregnant. He’s thrilled at the news and the two begin planning a future. Then Jenny shows up on his doorstep and announces she too is pregnant. Feeling betrayed, Olivia immediately breaks up with Connor and storms off. This is just the beginning of a bumpy emotional ride.
I think we can all agree Connor is in a real predicament with two babies with two different women on the way. He’s trying to do right by both of them. For example, he agrees to go along with Jenny’s lie to her religious parents that they’re a couple. She keeps promising to come clean to them, but never does until the s*** hits the fan. He also wants to right by Olivia, but she makes it unnecessarily difficult. She has issues with feelings and commitment. She masks her insecurities with sarcasm and flippant remarks. Deep down, she really cares about Connor, but is too afraid to admit to anybody including herself. Instead, she plays mind games with Connor only showing interest when she fears she might be losing him. It’s not right. I kept wondering what Connor sees in her. Why does he let her treat him so badly? Then there’s the final scene. Without giving away too much, I’ll just quote my movie buddy Chris: “He folded like a f***ing lawn chair.” Her manipulative behavior hampered my enjoyment of The Threesome.
Barring my dislike of Olivia, I thought The Threesome was pretty okay. I like that it tries to look at the situation in a semi-serious way. Sure, there are some amusing bits. As expected, both women go into labor at the same time and end up at the same hospital. Hartigan could have taken the road most traveled and have Connor wildly race between hospital rooms trying to maintain a façade of normalcy. He wisely resists the temptation and keeps it believable (to a degree).
The acting isn’t bad at all. Julia Sweeney (SNL) just about steals the show as Connor’s outspoken mom. While looking forward to being a grandmother, she doesn’t hesitate to point out his carelessness. White also elicits laughs as the token gay friend who always seems to be around. King makes a semi-appealing lead. He’s likable enough even if he doesn’t completely sell it as a guy in an unbelievable situation. Cruz is aces as Jenny, a charming and intelligent girl who needs to get out from under the thumbs of her overprotective parents. I may not have liked her character, but Deutch does a great job in the role.
I saw The Threesome as an AMC Screen Unseen. I didn’t know what I’d be seeing beforehand. I had a feeling it would be this. It’s not too bad. It’s not all that great either. It has some good points, but it’s just okay as a whole. It’s nothing I’d rush to watch again.
