She is not a relationship girl, and she avoids them like the plague
Lead female character Emma doesn’t really want anything to get in her way, especially not romance. As a doctor in-residence, she goes nonstop, often working 80 hour weeks with back-to-back shifts. She values honesty and efficiency, and she also likes to have sex. So, the sex-on-demand arrangement is the perfect answer. Per the screenwriter: « Emma is not a girly girl and wants to approach life very logically. ‘ »
Leading male Adam is a man who has always had an easy time with women and adopts a carefree approach to life. The son of an ex-television star a bit past his prime, Adam has an ease with women and is no stranger to hooking up. After his latest relationship with girlfriend Vanessa breaks up, he is confounded to find her hanging around, but now with a new boyfriend at her side. Elizabeth Meriwether continues, « After Adam learns that his father is dating his ex-girlfriend, he realises that maybe he has been too nice and too open. He begins to see emotional availability as a dangerous idea. At this point he just wants to shut the door and mess around. »
After a spontaneous hook up one morning that takes both Emma and Adam by surprise, the two agree to explore the idea of a « no strings attached » relationship. They agree to use each other strictly for sex and remain friends without any of the other complications that usually accompany a relationship.
She just wants to have fun and doesn’t want to put any pressure on a relationship, because that’s when people can turn into ‘weird versions of themselves
When asked if he undertook any research for the film, Ivan Reitman laughs and says, « Well, I was fortunate in that Elizabeth Meriwether, who’s still in her 20s, was smack in the middle of the technological and generational moment. » But he admits that he sometimes took his ‘research’ home with him: « Look, I have three children all in their 20s, who are or have been going through this experience. Read more