Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's 'The Drama' sparks controversy after early reviews — here's why
Contains spoilers for 'The Drama'
Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's 'The Drama' has been a highly anticipated film for a while now, and it is finally set to premiere on April 3. However, the title has already begun receiving flak from multiple parents. While the dark rom-com was projected as a wedding-themed film, a major sequence featuring Zendaya's Emma has left a segment of the audience unhappy. The scene in question reportedly sees the character confessing to Charlie (Pattinson) that she planned a high school shooting, but pulled the plug on the plan after getting cold feet at the last moment.
According to TMZ, Tom Mauser, whose son Daniel was murdered in the tragic 1999 Columbine High School massacre, told the outlet he was disgusted by the movie's dark twist. Known as an outspoken gun activist, Mauser criticized the storyline and also slammed Zendaya for humanizing shooters and normalizing shootings. At the time of this writing, there is no comment from the film's production house, A24. Despite the flak, 'The Drama' is still on track to release on April 3, 2026.
The movie follows Emma, whose father is a decorated military veteran. Her parents live in Louisiana, and she has an English degree from Boston University and works at Mission Books. The first half of the trailer sees her in love with Charlie, who has a Ph.D. in art history from Tufts University and serves as the director of the Cambridge Arts Museum. The clip then seems to give viewers a glimpse into the dark twist that has recently become the talk of the town. The short video sees the couple about to reveal to each other the worst thing they have ever done. The trailer then cuts to Charlie being in shock as the couple's relationship soon begins to go downhill. The official synopsis reads, "A happily engaged couple get put to the test when an unexpected revelation sends their wedding week off the rails." The film's cast also includes Mamoudou Athie, Alana Haim, and Hailey Gates in key roles.
On the project front, both Zendaya and Pattinson have major releases lined up. The 'Batman' and the 'Euphoria' stars will share the screen again in Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' and Denis Villeneuve's 'Dune 3'. Zendaya will next be seen alongside Tom Holland in 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'. For now, the marketing for 'The Drama' is in full swing, and it remains to be seen if this controversy gathers more traction in the days to come.
