Debapriya Bhattacharya
Helmed by Celine Song, ‘Materialists’ takes place in New York City, where Lucy Mason (Dakota Johnson) is one of the top matchmaking professionals. While she is responsible for nine weddings, she remains voluntarily single and maintains that she will either die alone or marry a wealthy man. At the wedding reception of her former client, the groom’s brother Harry Castillo (Pedro Pascal), a wealthy financier, approaches Lucy and expresses his interest in her. Surprisingly, Lucy also comes across her ex-boyfriend John Finch (Chris Evans) at the same event, where he is working as a caterer. They reminisce about their past relationship, which ended because of financial troubles.
In the following days, Lucy finds herself torn between the rich eligible bachelor vying for her affection and her former lover, who continues to have a place in her heart. The romantic comedy has the characters trying to make the right choice when it comes to choosing the right partner. If you’ve enjoyed the story, here is a list of movies similar to ‘Materialists’ that you can consider for your next watch.
12. Challengers (2024)
Directed by Luca Guadagnino, ‘Challengers’ follows tennis prodigy Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), who finds herself in a love triangle between fellow tennis players and best friends Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) and Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Connor) that spans across 13 years. After an injury on the court crashes Tashi’s dreams, she becomes a coach and marries Art, who goes on to become a champion. Meanwhile, Patrick ends up as a washed-up low-circuit player. Their stories culminate in a match between the two men on the ATP Challenger Tour, where Tashi is forced to consider the cost of winning. Similar to the ‘Materialists,’ the two men involved go after the same girl, who finds herself unable to make a clear choice.
11. The Broken Hearts Gallery (2020)
Marking the directorial debut of Natalie Krinsky, ‘The Broken Hearts Gallery’ tells the story of Lucy Gulliver (Geraldine Viswanathan) from New York City, who loses her job and her boyfriend on the same day. Drunk and devastated, she climbs into the car of Nick Danielson (Dacre Montgomery), mistaking it to be the cab she booked. He takes her home, and overcoming the embarrassment of their initial meeting, the two become close. As Nick is renovating an old YMCA building, he and Lucy jointly come up with the concept of “The Broken Heart Gallery,” a pop-up space where people can connect over shared loss. The film showcases building a new connection while acknowledging the old, in keeping with the spirit of ‘Materialists.’
10. Enough Said (2013)
‘Enough Said’ by Nicole Holofcener revolves around Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), a divorced single parent who lives in Los Angeles and works as a masseuse. Dreading the departure of her daughter, Ellen (Tracey Fairaway), to college, she gets into a relationship with Albert (James Gandolfini). While she becomes increasingly fond of the latter, she gets a new client and friend in Marianne (Catherine Keener), who turns out to be the former wife of Albert. With Marianne constantly denigrating her ex-husband, Eva starts to doubt her own relationship with him. Like Lucy Mason in ‘Materialists,’ Eva needs time to figure out if she can trust her heart to choose the right person.
9. Begin Again (2014)
John Carney’s ‘Begin Again’ chronicles the discovery of songwriter Gretta James (Keira Knightley) by Dan Mulligan (Mark Ruffalo), an out-on-his-luck label executive from New York City. Fiercely independent, Gretta is newly single after she finds out that her successful musician boyfriend, Dave Kohl (Adam Levine), has cheated on her. She comes across Dan, father of one with an estranged wife, at a bar on the Lower East Side of NYC. Listening to her perform, Dan decides to sign her for a record album. As they start working together, the bond that they form changes their lives. For both Gretta and Dan, the connection happens despite them not having great experiences in their separate last relationships, much like Lucy Mason in ‘Materialists.’
8. Set It Up (2018)
Helmed by Claire Scanlon, ‘Set it Up’ centers around two employees, Harper Moore (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie Young (Glen Powell), hatching a plot to get their bosses to date each other. Harper is the assistant to Kirsten Stevens (Lucy Liu), editor of an online sports journalism outlet, while Charlie is the assistant to venture capitalist Rick Otis (Taye Diggs). Working in the same building, they walk into each other one night while getting food for their respective bosses. As they bond over not having time for their personal lives, they come up with the ingenious plan to get out of working overtime. The duo puts their matchmaking skills to the test, which Lucy Mason in ‘Materialists’ has perfected.
7. Made of Honor (2008)
‘Made of Honor’ by Paul Weiland follows Tom Bailey Jr. (Patrick Dempsey), a playboy who has never had a serious relationship due to his fear of commitment. His best friend from college, Hannah (Michelle Monaghan), is the exact opposite when it comes to dating. Staying single through the time they’ve been friends, Hannah surprises Tom one day by introducing him to her fiancé and asking him to be her maid of honor. At the same time, Tom realizes his true feelings for Hannah and decides to get the wedding cancelled and woo her himself. Hannah thus faces the same choice as Lucy Mason does in ‘Materialists,’ with the two men vying over her.
6. 27 Dresses (2008)
Directed by Anne Fletcher, ’27 Dresses’ stars Katherine Heigl as Jane Nichols, a young working woman who has been a bridesmaid at 27 weddings and has a closet full of the accumulated dresses. Whenever any of her friends need their wedding planned, Jane is the person they reach out to. Putting the needs of others before her own has never allowed Jane to pursue romantic relations of her own. While she secretly nurses a crush on her boss, he gets engaged to her sister Tess (Malin Åkerman). Dejected, Jane questions her life choices even as Kevin Doyle (James Marsden), a handsome and cynical journalist, finds her experiences fascinating and begins to study her for a potential story. Jane’s story overlaps with that of Lucy Mason in ‘Materialists,’ as both women are initially more concerned about the relationships of people other than themselves.
5. The Wedding Planner (2001)
‘The Wedding Planner’ marks the feature directorial debut of Adam Shankman and tells the story of Mary Fiore (Jennifer Lopez), the titular wedding planner from San Francisco whose dedication to her career leaves no room for love in her life. However, love comes crashing into her life in the form of pediatrician Steve Edison (Matthew McConaughey), who saves her from an accident on the street during their first meeting. While she gets excited at the prospect, her hopes come crashing down when she discovers Steve to be the fiancé of her biggest client. Not only does Mary work in an allied field to Lucy Mason, but she also shares Lucy’s initial absence of a love life. However, the choice between the two lovers that Lucy faces in ‘Materialists’ is faced by Steve in the film.
4. Sleeping with Other People (2015)
‘Sleeping with Other People’ by Leslye Headland is about Jake Harper (Jason Sudeikis) and Elaine “Lainey” Dalton (Alison Brie), who come across each other twelve years after a one-night stand. Both of them are terrible at relationships and prone to sleeping around. Bonding over their shared trouble, the two become best friends but decide to stay completely platonic to avoid ruining their relationship. Their closeness makes their friends assume that they are seeing each other, while Jake and Lainey themselves become aware of their evolving feelings. The inability to settle down in a stable relationship is what the duo shares with Lucy Mason in ‘Materialists.’
3. Always Be My Maybe (2019)
Nahnatchka Khan’s directorial ‘Always Be My Maybe’ centers around Sasha Tran (Ali Wong) and Marcus Kim (Randall Park), childhood friends who have grown up next door in San Francisco. Falling out of touch after a brief teenage fling, the two reunite after sixteen years when Sasha returns to San Francisco as a celebrity chef to open a restaurant. Realizing that they still have chemistry together, Marcus imagines a potential new relationship with Sasha. However, the latter takes him by surprise by starting to date movie star Keanu Reeves (playing himself). The film, like ‘Materialists,’ has a career-oriented woman trying to navigate her relationships, as she is being wooed by a new, successful love interest while still being adored by a less-established ex.
2. Somebody I Used to Know (2023)
Helmed by Dave Franco, ‘Somebody I Used to Know’ revolves around reality television showrunner Ally (Alison Brie), whose program gets cancelled by the network. The setback prompts her to return to her hometown, where she reunites with her former boyfriend, Sean (Jay Ellis). After enjoying an evening together, Sean refuses Ally’s proposal to sleep together. She finds out the next day that he is engaged and is soon to marry Cassidy (Kiersey Clemons). Similar to John Finch in ‘Materialists,’ Ally is left to devise her way of coping with losing an old love once again.
1. Love, Guaranteed (2020)
Directed by Mark Steven Johnson, ‘Love, Guaranteed’ follows Susan Whitaker (Rachael Leigh Cook), an attorney at Whitaker Associates who mostly works pro bono cases. When Nick Evans (Damon Wayans Jr.) decides to sue the titular dating website Love, Guaranteed after not finding any meaningful connection despite going on 986 dates through the app, Susan takes up his case. While she never has time for dating herself, she creates an account on the platform to investigate the case. However, she ends up falling for the person right in front of her eyes. The movie shares many similarities with ‘Materialists,’ with characters actively seeking love whether via an online platform or good old-fashioned matchmaking. Lucy Mason’s ambivalence to love is reflected in Susan, as they both initially opt to stay single instead of dating around and finding out.
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