Meg Ryan is making her triumphant return to rom-coms in the new movie What Happens Later — and the first teaser proves she’s still the best in the biz.
Ryan, 61, stars alongside David Duchovny in the Bleeker Street film, which she also cowrote and directed. Based on the Steven Dietz play Shooting Star, the feel-good movie follows ex-lovers Bill (Duchovny) and Willa (Ryan) as they unexpectedly reconnect while stranded in an airport.
“I’m looking for my connection,” Ryan’s character says in the first clip released Wednesday, August 30. “We were rerouted through … wherever it is we are.”
When she locks eyes with her former flame, the two share an awkward wave. Bill asks Willa how she’s been, and she quips, “Oh, for the last 20 years?”
The pair wander around the airport together, killing time as they wait for updates on their respective flights. “I’ve been 49 forever and ever and ever,” Willa says, to which Bill responds, “Wow, lucky you. I feel like I’ve been in my 50s since my 20s.”
A screen flashes the message, “Everything is delayed,” but it’s not an average storm holding up the duo’s travel plans. The airport appears to have magical capabilities — and an all-knowing announcer that helps guide the couple’s reconciliation.
“Relax, you’re already living out your worst case scenario,” Willa teases her anxious ex. “What, being stuck here with you?” Bill playfully retorts.
With nothing else to do, Willa and Bill revisit their relationship to find out what really went wrong — and remember why they fell in love to begin with. Willa explores the biggest “what ifs” of their past and future, wondering, “If we could see our memories in advance, would we do anything different?”
What Happens Later is Ryan’s first film role since 2015’s Ithaca, which she also directed. The indie venture is a return to form for Ryan, best known for her roles in You’ve Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally.
In an interview conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Ryan opened up to Entertainment Weekly about the passion project and its theme of second chances. “Sometimes there’s a question of: Will they be together? Will they not be together?” she explained. “For that reason, [What Happens Later] sort of evolves the rom-com genre just a little bit. It’s also about old people, and it’s still romantic and sexy.”
Ryan noted that she was partially inspired by the “banter and rhythm” of films from the ’40s and by the late Nora Ephron, who she worked with many times over the years. “[She] used to say about rom-coms that they were really a secretly incredible delivery system to comment on the times, and we do that in this movie,” Ryan said.
She went on to praise Duchovny, contrasting his real-life personality to that of his character. “It’s just been really fun to see David embrace this guy who I don’t think is anything really like David. … To see him dive into every single scene in the fullest way, he’s funny, and he’s smart, and he’s dear, and irresistible,” she told the outlet.
What Happens Later hits theaters October 13.
