Molly Gordon says she resisted repeated nudges to frame Oh, Hi! as a horror film, explaining in a late-night TV interview that the story was conceived as a relationship comedy that takes an uncomfortable turn rather than a genre piece built for scares. Her comments aired Aug. 7 during an appearance tied to the movie’s current theatrical run.
The film, directed by Sophie Brooks and co-written by Gordon, centers on a new couple’s weekend trip that unravels after a bondage game exposes mismatched expectations; Gordon’s character refuses to release her partner, pushing the tone from buoyant to uneasy. The premise has drawn comparisons to Misery, a label Gordon pushed back on in the interview.
Gordon added that early conversations around the project sometimes steered toward darker packaging, but she argued for a comic perspective that still acknowledges how quickly romance can curdle. In recent press, she has described the line between affection and anxiety as thin, saying the film’s tension grows from ordinary miscommunication rather than slasher mechanics.
Oh, Hi! premiered Jan. 26 at the Sundance Film Festival and opened in U.S. theaters on July 25 through Sony Pictures Classics. The cast includes Gordon and Logan Lerman, with Geraldine Viswanathan and John Reynolds in key supporting roles. Marketing has emphasized the “rom-com gone wrong” angle, highlighting the confined setting and the push-pull between humor and panic inside a single fraught night.
Public remarks by the leads have reinforced that positioning. Lerman has called the project a chance to play within romantic-comedy rhythms while embracing a restrained, single-location challenge, and Gordon has said the film’s unease comes from recognizable dating dynamics rather than shock tactics. The comments arrive as studios test genre-bending comedies in midsummer slots, banking on word of mouth and recognizable stars to cut through crowded release calendars.
