Top 10 Rom-Com Couples With the WORST Chemistry

Using the classic enemies-to-lovers trope, this movie follows two reporters from rival newspapers who finally team up to break a big story. It’s probably meant to be a modern update on a screwball comedy. But Julia Roberts and Nick Nolte were reportedly more enemies than lovers on set, with their personalities apparently clashing. And there’s a noticeable tension between them on screen, even after their characters are supposed to be falling for each other. Let’s not forget the awkwardness resulting from the substantial age gap between the pair, either. The result is an on-screen relationship that’s tedious at the best of times and painful to watch at the worst.

In order to inherit $100 million, Jimmie has to tie the knot by 6:05 p.m. on his 30th birthday – which happens to be tomorrow. Since he just flubbed his proposal to his long-term partner Anne, he tries tracking down various exes in the hopes of finding a willing bride. Chris O’Donnell is usually pretty charming, so we’re not sure what went wrong here. His character Jimmie is just goofy and bumbling, coming across as more annoying than sweet. More importantly, he and Renée Zellweger’s Anne seem to be on completely different wavelengths. It’s hard to imagine the characters having been together for three years before the events of the movie.

At the innocent age of ten, Charlie was cursed by a little girl with a crush on him. Therefore, every woman he’s with will meet her true love after breaking up with him. Fast-forward many years, and Charlie falls for the beautiful Cam. Despite how talented Dane Cook and Jessica Alba both are, the romance falls short. For one thing, his character is unfunny and not super likable. Hers, meanwhile, is accident-prone, but it reads more embarrassing than cute. Together, they’re just not really believable as a couple. Cook had another unconvincing match-up with Kate Hudson in “My Best Friend’s Girl”. But “Good Luck Chuck” takes the prize for his worst on-screen romance.

If you ask us, these two do not belong together. After meeting Ben at a club and spending a drunken night with him, Alison discovers she’s pregnant, and the pair try to make things work. The problem is, they’re complete opposites. Alison is an ambitious professional, while Ben is a jobless, unmotivated slacker. Katherine Heigl is similarly mismatched in “The Ugly Truth,” where we don’t understand what her character sees in Gerard Butler’s rude, misogynistic Mike. It’s obvious that Alison and Ben also have nothing in common, so why would they want to raise a kid together? Maybe the real question is, why can’t anyone give Heigl’s characters a romantic interest who’s at her level?!

Jack is an arrogant and difficult actor. Yet he persuades Isabel to play the role of Samantha opposite his Darrin in a remake of the 1960s sitcom “Bewitched.” But as it turns out, Isabel is a real witch. After Jack undermines her work on the show, Isabel and her Aunt Clara temporarily cast a love spell on him for revenge. That makes sense, because magic is the only thing that would make us believe these two are actually attracted to each other. Will Ferrell and Nicole Kidman are both stars in their own right, but make for a strange pair here. His signature over-the-top acting style contrasts so poorly with her understated performance that it sometimes seems like they’re in two different movies.

Jennifer Lopez as a beautiful, successful singer with a string of failed unions? That’s an easy sell. Owen Wilson as a humble divorced math teacher? That’s also not hard to accept. But the two of them together? Now we’re not buying it. After discovering her fiancé is cheating on her moments before their very public wedding, Kat plucks Charlie out of the crowd and marries him instead. It’s a cute premise, but Charlie never outgrows his wide-eyed, adorkable persona. He’s totally out of place in her world. And though she tries to fit into his, her fame and notoriety are going to follow them forever. There’s not enough of a spark there for us to overlook all that, so we don’t see things working out.

Salma Hayek and Matthew Perry would arguably seem like bizarre choices to play a couple even in a better movie. Of course, “Friends” was at the height of its popularity at the time, and Perry was a bankable star. And Salma Hayek is Salma Hayek! However, the attraction between her carefree photographer and his starchy New York City business-type is totally unconvincing. The two meet, get together, and part ways. But much like “Knocked Up,” an unexpected pregnancy complicates matters, and they ultimately pursue a relationship despite their differences. No amount of weddings or cutesy banter can persuade us that these two are really into each other, though.

Ashton Kutcher and Reese Witherspoon are actually friends in real life. Maybe that’s why Debbie and Peter are much more convincing as besties than two people passionately in love. We’d probably even be able to see them as an old married couple — but alas, that’s not the story. It doesn’t help that they’re hardly ever on screen together, having nearly all of their conversations over the phone. Because of this, the two never get a chance to develop the physical chemistry that you need to make a rom-com couple compelling. So unfortunately, when they finally get together at the last minute, it just kind of feels weird and uncomfortable.

Kelly Clarkson never wanted to make this movie. After winning the first season of “American Idol,” she tried her best to get out of her contractual obligation. Perhaps that’s why neither she nor Justin Guarini look super thrilled to be there, and why the love story between their characters feels so stiff. “From Justin to Kelly” was an obvious cash-in on the popularity of the competition show, but even the musical numbers feel like their hearts aren’t in it. It doesn’t help that the film itself is also just bad. From their meet-cute to their big songs, the two actors are clearly just going through the motions, and no one is buying their awkward flirtation.

When your two stars end up actually falling in love but the romance on screen is this lifeless, something has gone horribly wrong. Larry is an incompetent gangster with a temper who tries to look strong and powerful, while Ricki is more insightful, and won’t take his nonsense. She’s also a lesbian, and initially makes it clear that he has no chance with her. Still, they eventually get together. Ben Affleck’s chemistry with Sandra Bullock in “Forces of Nature” is almost as nonexistent, but at least the couple in that movie doesn’t end up together. The relationship in “Gigli” could work on a buddy comedy level, but the romance itself makes zero sense. How did two talented actors manage to make this look so forced?