Romance is a matter of weird science in a romantic comedy of errors adapted by screenwriter Sarah Rothschild from Ali Hazelwood's best-selling novel and directed by Claire Scanlon. Brilliant PhD student Olive (Lili Reinhart) has a bright future ahead of her in academia if she could only get over her crush Jeremy (Nicholas Duvernay). When her best friend Anh (Rachel Marsh) reveals she intends to romantically pursue Jeremy, Olive determines the best course of action is to acquire a fake boyfriend. Her awkwardly chosen candidate is notorious professor Adam Carlsen (Tom Bateman), whose gruff public persona would be softened by a fake girlfriend on his arm. Olive and Adam pretend to date to as part of a mutually beneficial agreement with clear rules and boundaries. But those guidelines are gradually ignored when the pretend couple begin to experience genuine feelings for each other