Best Rom-Coms to Watch When You’re Stuck at Home: From ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’ to ‘When Harry Met Sally’

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Best Rom-Coms to Watch When You’re Stuck at Home: From ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’ to ‘When Harry Met Sally’

Romance for all! Whether you’re stuck at home due to inclement weather, or simply want a night in, Us Weekly has the perfect must-watch movie list for indoor viewing. While some fans may opt for social media quizzes or binge-watching a new show, others choose to break out their go-to romantic comedies during a long weekend staycation where they never leave the couch. Films including You’ve Got Mail, The Perfect Man and Pillow Talk remind everyone that romance doesn’t always happen face-to-face. It can happen via email, through instant messaging and over the phone. “You’ve Got Mail is the most soul-mate-y of soul-mate movies,” Mindy Kaling told Vulture in September 2010 while talking about her obsession with the Nora Ephron film. Bridget Jones’s Diary, The Holiday and Legally Blonde, meanwhile, reveal the best breakup remedies that anyone can do at home. While Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet switched houses, traveling from L.A. to England and vice versa, they also enjoyed a lot of lounging around in their houses to get through their tough times. Case and point: Diaz’s character Amanda having a dance party in her pajamas while drinking wine in the English countryside. [jwplayer Jgsm0Ltt-zhNYySv2] When Harry Met Sally, on the other hand, makes viewers wonder if they really can be just friends with the opposite sex. “You never know. You make a movie, and hopefully you like it, and hopefully other people [do too],” Rob Reiner told Us and other reporters at the 30th Anniversary Screening of When Harry Met Sally at TCM Classic Film Festival Opening Night Gala in April 2019. “You have no idea if it will stand the test of time, and it’s kind of cool that it did.” The director attributed the film’s success to its universal themes that are still relevant decades after the movie’s 1989 premiere. “I think that there are some basic truths about men and women that people connect with, and those kind of things — that dance, that weird dance that men and women do with one another kind of is basic and kind of there all of the time,” Reiner explained. Clueless , for its part, will have fans yearning for parties on Sunset Boulevard where they sing along to “Rolling With the Homies” with their best friends. No matter your reasons for staying indoors — including battling an illness, braving a storm or overcoming a rough break up — Us has you covered with the ultimate rom-com viewing list. Scroll below for the best list of movies to watch while bundled up on the couch.

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You’ve Got Mail

Virtual love is easy to connect with when one is stuck inside — enter You’ve Got Mail. The 1988 movie starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan centers on two business rivals, Joe Fox and Kathleen Kelly, who fall in love online, despite battling against one another in real life. Plus, its New York City fall vibes will make any shut-in feel warm and fuzzy.

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Bridget Jones's Diary

Take a few tips from Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger), who knows that ice cream under a big blanket makes everything better. The 2001 rom-com reveals what happens when Bridget becomes determined to improve herself while looking for love … writing about her journey through it all. Fans can also watch 2004’s Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and 2016’s Bridget Jones’s Baby.

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The Holiday

Viewers may not be able to switch houses with someone across the pond like Amanda (Diaz) does with Iris (Winslet) in The Holiday, but they can pretend. After both women decide they need a change and to be somewhere else close to the holidays, they end up finding themselves, romance and friendship — amid the Christmas craziness and Santa Ana winds.

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Legally Blonde

2001’s Legally Blonde shows what can happen when someone puts their mind to something. Take it from Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon), who went from sorority girl in California to Harvard Law student, people are complex — and the “Bend and Snap” works every time! Plus, Elle knows how to deal with heartbreak … by throwing chocolates while watching a soap opera.

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When Harry Met Sally

Leave it to rom-com queen Meg Ryan to make multiple movies ideal for a night in. 1989’s When Harry Met Sally shows the evolution of Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Ryan), who have known each other for years but don’t want to cross the friendship-relationship line. They drive each other crazy, but have a bond stronger than your average pair, and they can talk for hours.

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While You Were Sleeping

If you believe in love at first coma, then While You Were Sleeping is a must-watch. After Chicago Transit Authority token collector, Lucy (Sandra Bullock), is mistaken for the fiancée for a coma patient, Peter (Peter Gallagher), who she frequently saw at her job, she must decide what to do when she falls for Peter’s brother, Jack (Bill Pullman), and his family amid her lies.

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The Perfect Man

The Perfect Man is the quintessential rom-com from the early 2000s. It stars Hilary Duff, whose character Holly starts sending her mom, Jean (Heather Locklear), e-mails pretending to be a secret admirer in order to make her believe in love and the perfect man. The film also stars Chris Noth as the love guru and possible romantic interest.

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P.S. I Love You

Need a good cry? 2007’s P.S. I Love You will make you cry, laugh and then cry some more as viewers see Holly (Hilary Swank), a young widow, struggle to find herself again with the help of 10 letters that her late husband, Gerry (Gerard Butler), left for her to find after his passing. It also stars Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gershon as Holly’s BFFs.

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13 Going on 30

Imagination is key while staying indoors, so Jennifer Garner’s 13 Going on 30 is the perfect pick. The 2004 film follows Jenna Rink (Garner) after she makes a wish on her 13th birthday that results in her waking up as a 30-year-old woman. She doesn’t, however, forget about her favorite candy as a kid or how to do the “Thriller” dance, even if she does have a fancy grown-up job.

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Something’s Gotta Give

Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson, what more does one need? Something’s Gotta Give tells the story of a womanizer named Harry (Nicholson), who after suffering a heart attack at his young girlfriend’s mother Erica’s (Keaton) house, falls for her, even though Erica ends up dating his doctor, Julian (Keanu Reeves).

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Pillow Talk

Doris Day and Rock Hudson prove that love can happen when you least expect in 1959’s Pillow Talk. After fighting over their party line and which one of them should be on it, Brad (Hudson) and Jan (Day) fall for each other, but only after a few rocky moments and Jan being tricked by Brad’s alter ego, Rex Stetson.

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Clueless

In 1995’s Clueless, Cher (Alicia Silverstone) reveals what it’s like to be a valley girl in the ‘90s — it includes a lot of plaid and house parties — while accidentally falling for her ex-stepbrother, Josh (Paul Rudd). She also masters what it’s like to not be a good teen driver and goes head to head with disaster relief.