''Unpregnant'' is a 2020 American female buddy

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film co-written and directed by

Rachel Lee Goldenberg Rachel Lee Goldenberg (born 1984/1985) is an American film director and screenwriter. She has directed a number of feature films and television episodes. She had her breakthrough after she was discovered by Will Ferrell, who gave her the opportu ...

, based on the novel of the same name by Ted Caplan and Jenni Hendriks. It stars

Haley Lu Richardson Haley Lu Richardson (born March 7, 1995) is an American actress. Following early television roles on the Disney Channel sitcom '' Shake It Up'' (2013) and the ABC Family supernatural drama '' Ravenswood'' (2013–2014), she acted in the coming-o ...

and

Barbie Ferreira Barbara "Barbie" Seppe Ferreira (; born December 14, 1996) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Kat Hernandez in the HBO series ''Euphoria'' (2019–2022). Early life Ferreira was born in East Harlem in New York ...

, with Alex MacNicoll,

Breckin Meyer Breckin Meyer (born May 7, 1974) is an American actor. He is best known for his work on the Adult Swim animated sketch series ''Robot Chicken'', which has earned him two Annie Awards and five Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Meyer gained tract ...

Giancarlo Esposito Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito (; born April 26, 1958) is an American actor and director. He rose to prominence by portraying Gus Fring in the AMC (TV channel), AMC crime drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2011), a role he reprised in ...

Sugar Lyn Beard Stephanie "Sugar" Lyn Beard (born August 27, 1981) is a Canadian actress and radio personality. She co-hosted '' The Zone'' on YTV from 2001 to 2007. Early life Stephanie Lyn Beard was born in the Scarborough district of Toronto on August 27, 1 ...

, and

Betty Who Jessica Anne Newham (born 5 October 1991), known by her stage name Betty Who, is an Australian musician and singer. After independently releasing her debut single, "Somebody Loves You (Betty Who song), Somebody Loves You" (2012), and her debut ...

. The film follows a pregnant teenager, Veronica (Richardson), who discovers that she cannot get an

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

in her home state of

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

without her parents' permission and subsequently convinces her former friend Bailey (Ferreira) to take a road trip with her to

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

so she can get one there. It was released on September 10, 2020, by

HBO Max Max (known in other countries as, and soon to be reverted globally to HBO Max) is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. It is a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Discovery Streaming on behalf of Home Box Of ...

Plot

Seventeen-year-old Veronica Clarke takes a pregnancy test at school and is interrupted by her former best friend, Bailey Butler who sees that the test is positive. Initially, not knowing whose it is, Bailey offers to give a ride to a clinic where she can get an abortion if she needs one. Then, she assumes Veronica will be keeping the baby, subsequently disposing of the test. Veronica decides to get an abortion and then discovers it is forbidden in Missouri without parental consent. She quickly formulates a plan to get to Albuquerque, New Mexico where clinics will perform abortions without parental involvement, but lacks funds to make it all the way. Meeting with her boyfriend Kevin, she is shocked when he reacts to the pregnancy news by proposing. He also confesses he realized the condom had broken. Veronica pretends she will consider the proposal, taking the ring with her. She then goes to Bailey who agrees to drive her to Albuquerque. At their first stop Veronica tries to pawn her engagement ring and is stopped by Kevin, who has been following her. Learning that Veronica needs the money for an abortion, the sympathetic pawnshop broker agrees to buy her ring. Veronica and Bailey head to Texas though they fight over their former friendship which Bailey fails to realize is because Bailey's father was ashamed of her nerdy pursuits as a child. While stopping at a diner Bailey is frightened by the arrival of local sheriffs. She reveals that the

Firebird Firebird and fire bird may refer to: Mythical birds * Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures ** Fenghuang, sometimes called Chinese phoenix * Vermilion bird, one of the four symbols of the Chinese constella ...

they are driving belongs to her mother's boyfriend. The girls escape detection when a fellow patron named Jarrod creates a scene. Jarrod later gives them a lift, introducing them to Matthews, a race car driver, who offers to drop them off at the closest bus station. Matthews turns out to be a woman (Kira), who Bailey is immediately attracted to. Bailey then reveals she's a

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

and later has her first kiss with Kira. Before Kira can drive them to the station a young couple, overhearing their need for a ride to Albuquerque for the abortion, offers to drive them all the way. Bailey and Veronica wake up in the morning at the couple's house, where they discover that the couple are actually pro-lifers trying to stop Veronica from having the abortion. They manage to escape the pro-lifers by stealing their

GMC Yukon GMC may refer to: Government India * Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation, in Gujarat * Gobichettipalayam Municipal Corporation, in Tamil Nadu * Guntur Municipal Corporation, in Andhra Pradesh * Guwahati Municipal Corporation, in Assam * Gwalior ...

and faking their own deaths. Arriving at the nearest bus station they discover it is out of order but stumble across a mechanic shop run by anti-government survivalist Bob. Hearing Veronica needs an abortion he agrees to drive her to the clinic in an old

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

limo. During the ride, Veronica's friends call and urge her to say the pregnancy test belongs to Bailey. Wanting to protect herself Veronica agrees that Bailey is the most likely suspect. Bailey overhears, triggering a fight between them about the dissolution of their friendship. Bailey leaves while Veronica continues on to her appointment. When Veronica realizes Bailey has gone to see her estranged father, she reschedules the appointment and follows Bailey. Arriving at a flower shop Bailey's father works in, Veronica witnesses their awkward reunion, and comes to Bailey's defense when her father treats her coldly. At the clinic, Kevin surprises them and threatens to tell everyone about the abortion unless Veronica stays with him, but she tells him to go ahead and do it. After the abortion, they realize they have no more cash and make calls to their respective mothers who get them plane tickets home. At home, Veronica's mother admits to being confused by her decision but reiterates her love for her daughter. At school the next day Veronica learns that Kevin never revealed her abortion to her friends, but she decides to tell them anyway. She also decides to continue her friendship with Bailey and goes to sit with her at lunch. Some time later, the two go on another road trip to Roswell, New Mexico.

Cast

Production

In June 2019, it was announced

would distribute the film, with

directing from a screenplay by Ted Caplan and Jenni Hendriks based upon their own novel of the same name.

Greg Berlanti Gregory Berlanti (born May 24, 1972) is an American screenwriter, producer and director. He is known for his work on the television series ''Dawson's Creek'', ''Brothers & Sisters (2006 TV series), Brothers & Sisters'', ''Everwood'', ''Political ...

served as a producer under his

Berlanti Productions Berlanti Productions (formerly known as Berlanti-Liddell Productions and Berlanti Television) is an American film and television production company founded by screenwriter, producer and filmmaker Greg Berlanti and producer Mickey Liddell in 2000 ...

banner. In September 2019,

and

joined the cast of the film. In October 2019,

joined the cast of the film.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

began on October 15, 2019, in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

, and wrapped on November 19, 2019.

Release

The film was released on September 10, 2020, on

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The site's critics consensus reads: "''Unpregnant'' puts a compelling twist on the road trip comedy -- and treats its sensitive subject with heart." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100, based on reviews from 11 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Inkoo Kang of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' wrote, "Largely fueled by Richardson and Ferreira’s charisma and chemistry, ''Unpregnant'' is an amiable if uneven ride." Natalia Winkelman of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote, "Its driving force may seem topical, but the story's heart is timeless: the harmony between longtime friends."

Accolades

''Unpregnant'' was nominated for the 2021

GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding TV Movie GLAAD () is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization. Originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayals in the media and entertainment industries, it has since ex ...

References

External links

* * {{Max (streaming service) 2020 films 2020 comedy-drama films 2020 LGBTQ-related films 2020s American films 2020s buddy comedy-drama films 2020s English-language films 2020s female buddy films 2020s feminist films 2020s road comedy-drama films American buddy comedy-drama films American female buddy films American feminist comedy films American road comedy-drama films American teen LGBTQ-related films Films about abortion in the United States Films based on American novels Films based on young adult literature Films directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg Films produced by Greg Berlanti Films produced by Sarah Schechter (producer) Films scored by Roger Neill Films set in Missouri Films set in New Mexico Films with screenplays by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson Films with screenplays by Rachel Lee Goldenberg HBO Max films Lesbian-related films LGBTQ-related comedy-drama films English-language comedy-drama films English-language buddy comedy-drama films