Love is in the air … well, more like lust … during the one night singles are allowed to have sex in the romantic comedy One Night Only. The 2026 rom-com is set in an alternate reality in which a law was passed in the U.S. forbidding singles from having sex. However, for one blissful night each year, the law is lifted so singles can indulge their desires.
The film begins with Owen (Callum Turner, Eternity), owner of a NYC pizza restaurant, letting his crew off early so they can go and enjoy the night. He believes he’s set since his plans involve meeting up with his girlfriend, Malika (Maya Hawke, Stranger Things). However, Malika tosses a monkey wrench into Owen’s plans for the annual night of legal sex. Malika wants to sleep with someone else tonight, just to explore what it’s like and be adventurous. She needs Owen to spend the night elsewhere so she can have the apartment.
Stunned and heartbroken, Owen leaves his restaurant and wanders aimlessly until he accidentally bumps into Allie (Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown). Allie’s dressed to impress and hopes not only to get lucky tonight but also to meet someone she can have a real connection with. The two apologize for literally running into each other and, almost immediately, they sense a connection. Owen and Allie introduce themselves, but when Owen almost throws up on Allie – the Chinese food he had at dinner didn’t agree with him – she walks away disgusted.
So begins Allie and Owen’s quest to find someone to be with. Allie hopes to meet someone special and Owen feels the need to prove himself and get back out there after Malika dropped her bombshell. But fate or destiny seems determined that Allie and Owen should be together. No matter how hard each one tries to find someone, a series of crazy and goofy events ensues, causing Allie and Owen to keep finding each other.
Unfortunately, it’s all too silly and the plot doesn’t lead to laughs, something obviously necessary for a romantic “comedy.” In short, One Night Only is a rom-com misfire.
Monica Barbaro’s performance is the best thing about the film. Barbaro portrays Allie, a singer who suffers from stage fright – which is not as funny as it sounds – as a hopeless romantic who keeps yearning to find her prince on the only approved night of sex, and not just a fling or one-night stand. Barbaro’s subtle glances at Turner’s Owen as she wonders throughout the night if he could be “the one” are sweet and mostly convincing.
Callum Turner is solid as Owen, a nice guy who powers through the first shock of his relationship ending. He becomes determined to get back out there but finds himself drawn to Allie. Turner and Barbaro don’t have the chemistry necessary to pull off the setup, but when their characters are teasing or competing with each other, it somehow works.
The audience at this critic’s screening barely chuckled, which isn’t a good sign. The script just doesn’t land. The dialogue comes across as weak while the setups are absurd. Instead of laugh-out-loud funny, they’re cringe-inducing. A perfect example of this problem is when Allie sets her sights on a singing motorcycle artist whose big reveal yields zero comedic payoff.
Saddled with limp dialogue and a lack of onscreen chemistry between Turner and Barbaro, One Night Only is a forgettable romantic comedy best left off your watchlist.
GRADE: D
Rating: R for brief nudity, sexual material, and language
Runtime: 1 hour 42 minutes
Release Date: August 7, 2026
Directed By: Will Gluck (Anyone But You)