Nina Dobrev(The Vampire Diaries),Charles Melton(Riverdale) andJimmy O. Yang(Silicon Valley) have signed on to star in Netflix’s romantic comedyLove Hard, Collider has confirmed.
Described as a cross betweenWhen Harry Met SallyandRoxanne, the story follows an LA girl (Dobrev) who falls for an East Coast guy (Melton) on a dating app and decides to surprise him for Christmas, only to discover that she’s been catfished. But the object of her affection actually lives in the same town, and the guy who duped her (Yang) offers to set them up, but only if she pretends to be his own girlfriend for the holidays.
Deadlinereports thatHernán Jiménez(Elsewhere) will direct from a script byDanny MackeyandRebecca Ewing, whileMcGandMary Violawill produce via their Wonderland banner.Steve Bellowill serve as an executive producer. Netflix preemptively acquired Mackey and Ewing’s spec script last August, and one year later, the project is moving forward with new momentum.
The promiseisa bit problematic – guy blackmails girl into a fake relationship, awww! – but Idolike this cast configuration, as Melton is a rising star, and Yang is funny as hell, not to mention an underrated dramatic actor. However, this project’s secret weapon may be Ewing, who is one of the funniest writers I’ve met during my 14 years in Los Angeles. If she can mine some of her killer dating stories for laughs, Netflix may find itself with a surprise hit on its hands.
Dobrev is the formerVampire Diariesstar who was most starred oppositeBen PlattandMena Massoudin the indieRun This Town, while Melton recently co-starred inBad Boys for Lifeand will return for the fifth season ofRiverdale.
Yang, who is perhaps best known for playing Jian-Yang on HBO’sSilicon Valley, can currently be seen on the Netflix seriesSpace Force, and his very funny comedy specialGood Dealis available on Amazon. Yang appeared on the big screen earlier this year in Paramount’sLike a Bossand Sony’sFantasy Island, and his prior feature credits includeCrazy Rich Asiansand a heroic turn inPatriots Day.Click hereto watch a magician blow Yang’s mind in a recent episode of Collider’s Hocus Focus.
