While romantic comedies thrived in the 1980s and 1990s, they really proliferated in the new millennium. In the 2000s, as high-speed internet and iPods and fad diets and studded belts and flip phones inundated daily life, audiences flocked to theaters to watch well-known movie stars fall in love, along with hilarious mishaps, misunderstandings, and catchy pop music needledrops. So what rom-coms of the 2000s actually stand the test of time?
Just before superhero movies and franchise sequels choked rom-coms out of movie theaters, the genre was assured in its place as cozy counterprogramming to the bigger, more expensive tentpoles released by major studios. Don't believe me? Look at the weekend box office of July 18, 2008. That weekend saw the releases of both The Dark Knight – still one of the most successful superhero sequels of all time – and Mamma Mia!, based on the hit Broadway musical.
