Family, first love, betrayal, and loss are at the heart of the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel Regretting You. Regretting You is a romantic family drama with a heavy-handed soap opera twist, saved by Mckenna Grace’s performance and her onscreen chemistry with Mason Thames. It’s their budding romance that gives the film its spark, and the pairing is easily the best part of the drama.

16-year-old Clara Grant (Grace, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire) is running late on her way home to celebrate her mom’s birthday when she sees the coolest boy from her high school, Miller Adams (hames, Black Phone 2), standing on the side of the road.  Against her better judgement, she decides to give him a ride home. When she drops off Miller, Clara meets his grandpa, Hank (Clancy Brown, The Penguin), and spends more than just a few minutes hanging out with them.

As Clara heads home, she calls her aunt, Jenny (Willa Fitzgerald, Strange Darling), whom she can’t wait to tell that she just spent time with Miller.  (To say Clara has a crush on Miller would be a gross understatement.)  Unbeknownst to Clara, Jenny had her on speakerphone, and her mom, Morgan (Allison Williams, M3GAN 2.0), heard the entire conversation.  She’s a bit of a helicopter parent with Clara, which becomes obvious with her mini-interrogation of where Clara has been and who she’s been spending time with.

Still, later that night as the two work together on a special “mother-daughter” goals and aspirations art project, it’s clear they’re close.

However, Clara and Morgan’s world is shattered the following day when they are told that Jenny and Chris Grant (Scott Eastwood), Morgan’s husband and Clara’s dad, have been killed in a car accident. Jonah (Dave Franco, The Studio), Jenny’s fiancé and Morgan’s old friend from high school, talks to Morgan later that night, asking her, “Don’t you want to know why they were together in the car?” Morgan quickly replies, “Don’t…don’t say it,” clearly not wanting to face the reality that Chris and Jenny were having an affair.

At her dad’s funeral, Clara breaks down and needs to leave.  Miller goes out after her and takes a seat next to her on a bench.  Clara confesses, “I just lost my dad and my aunt; I just want to leave.” “Then let’s leave,” replies Miller.

Miller and Clara head off in Miller’s grandpa’s truck, marking the beginning of their romance and the struggle Clara and her mom will face in dealing with their family tragedy.

Grace flawlessly portrays Clara, capturing her spirit, her vulnerability, and her attraction to Miller.  The scenes where she is devastated by the loss of her aunt and dad are pitch-perfect, never feeling forced or contrived.  With Regretting You, Grace confirms she’s an incredibly talented young actor.

Mason Thames delivers a strong performance as Miller, the boy from the wrong side of the tracks who has fallen hard for Clara and wants to be there for her while simultaneously taking care of his grandpa. Thames depicts Miller as a decent, loyal, and surprisingly sensitive young man.

The same cannot be said of Allison Williams’ performance as Morgan, which occasionally feels forced. Williams does have solid chemistry with Grace, but the scenes with Franco fall flat. Williams and Franco lack chemistry, even as their characters mourn and deal with their spouses’ betrayal and their own life choices.

While Regretting You fails with its contrived family tragedy storyline, it is saved by the first love plotline and the outstanding performance delivered by Mckenna Grace.

GRADE: B-

Rating: PG-13 for teen drug and alcohol use, sexual content, and brief strong language
Release Date: October 24, 2025
Running Time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Directed By: Josh Boone