Meg Ryan is coming back to rom-coms. The star of When Harry Met Sally, You've Got Mail, and other classics is returning to the genre with What Happens Later, a film she co-wrote and directed.
"Sometimes there's a question of: Will they be together? Will they not be together?" Ryan told Entertainment Weekly. "For that reason, [What Happens Later] sort of evolves the rom-com genre just a little bit. It's also about old people, and it's still romantic and sexy."
The movie stars Ryan as Willa, who is snowed in at a regional airport with her ex, Bill, played by David Duchovny.
"My character, Willa, is a magical thinker and David's character, Bill, is a catastrophic thinker," Ryan told EW. She continued:
"These rom-coms really work when the two characters are somehow opposites and yet have a rhythm of intellect and humor and dialogue and banter that sort of indicates their compatibility. So, it's just been really fun to see David embrace this guy who I don't think is anything really like David. Whereas the Willa thing I can really relate to. To see him dive into every single scene in the fullest way, he's funny, and he's smart, and he's dear, and irresistible."
It's based on a play, Shooting Star by Steven Dietz, and Ryan drew inspiration from Nora Ephron in the making the movie. "Nora Ephron used to say about rom-coms that they were really a secretly incredible delivery system to comment on the times, and we do that in this movie," Ryan explains.
What Happens Later will premiere in theaters on October 13, 2023.
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram.
